Connectives  of 


English  Speech 


A  REVELATION  OF   THE  WEALTH  AND  POWER 
OF  THE  LANGUAGE 


Just  the  Rizht  Word    1°  "^^^  "^^  ^^'^^^  meaning  dear  and 
J_ * To  make  a  contrast  sharp  and  strong. 


exact} 
Also 
the  correct  use  of  Prepositions  shown  by  illustrative  examples,  and  convenient 
exercises  in  the  accurate  use  of  words. 


English  Synonyms 
Antonyms  and   Prepositions 

By  JAMES  C.  FERNALD 

**  There  is  no  other  book  yet  offered  which  is  its  equal  in  imparting  a 
mastery  of  words." — President  Cochran^  Brooklyn  Polytechnic  Inst. 

Over  7,500  Classified  and  Diurimwatetf  Synonyms ;  nearly 
4,000  Classified  Antonyms ;  Correct  Use  of  Prepositions,  and 
Practical  Helps  for  the  Correct  Use  of  Words  —  all  handily 
arranged  and  instantly  accessible. 

^  COMPANION  TO    THE  DICTION  ART.      A  KET  TO 
THE  TREASURES  OF  OUR  MARVELOUS  LANGUAGE 


Shades  tfSjntnym  Meaning  Discriminated 
No  two  synonymt  of  a  group  have  pre- 
cisely the  same  meaning.  Effectiveness 
of  syntax  depends  largely  on  the  choice 
of  just  the  right  one  of  several  synonyms. 
Unlike  other  lists,  synonyms  are  in- 
variably discriminated  in  this  book. 

Perplexing  Prepositions  Simplified 

Quick  means  are  furnished  for  finding 
at  a  glance  the  correct  preposition  to  use 
when,  as  frequently  happens,  there  is 
doubt. 


Clear^  Sharp  Distinctions  Furnished 

Strength  and  clearness  of  syntax  fre- 
quently depend  upon  antithesis  or  direct 
contrast.  The  number  of  antonyms  in 
this  book  is  seemingly  less  than  that  of 
synonyms.  This  is  because,  in  many 
cases,  the  synonyms  of  one  group  are 
the  antonyms  of  another. 

Valuable  Education  Furnished 

A  scries  of  practical  exercises  on  the 
correct  use  of  words  is  supplied,  accom- 
panied by  quotations  by  the  best  authors. 


"Will  be  found  invaluable  to  students,  and  to  all  English  speakers  who 
want  to  use  their  noble  tongue  effectively." — Minneapolis  Journal . 

**  This  is  a  book  of  importance,  and  invaluable  to  teacher,  student,  and 
ipcaker.  The  excellence  of  the  volume  is  testified  to  by  leading  literary 
authorities  in  the  United  States." — The  New  York  Times. 

I2M0,  Cloth,  574  pp.     Price,  $1.50,  Post-paid 


Furtk  ^  IVagnalls  Company,  44-60  East  23d  Street y  New  York 


Connectives  of 


English  Speech' 


> 


A^^ 


THE    CORRECT    USAGE    OF    PREPOSITIONS,    CON- 
JUNCTIONS, RELATIVE   PRONOUNS   AND 
ADVERBS  EXPLAINED  AND 
ILLUSTRATED 


BY 


JAMES   C.  FERNALD 

Editor  of  *'TAe  Students*    Standard  Dictionary y**    *^  English    Synonyms   and 

Antonyms y**  etc. 


FUNK  &  WAGNALLS  COMPANY 
NEW    YORK   AND   LONDON 


"^p^ 


GENERAL 


Cfopyright,  190U,  by  FUNK  &  WA0NALL8  COMPANl 


Published  June,  190U* 


Pbinted  in  thb  United  States  of  America. 


CONTENTS 


Introduction        .  -  -  - 

Part  I.    Prepositions 

I.  Prepositions — Their  Office  and  Use    - 


II. 
in. 

IV. 

V. 

VI. 

vn. 

VIII. 


Defined,  Etc.,  abaft — about 
*'  "     above — after    - 

against — among 
around — athwart 
barring — besides 

*  between — by 

*  concerning— from 
'     in — without  - 


IX.  "  ** 

Part  II.    Conjunctions      -  -  .  . 

Part  III.    Relative  Pronouns 

Part  IV.    Relative  or  Conjunctive  Adverbs 

Addenda,  Introductory  Particles,  it— there 

Index    -  -  -  -  -  - 


PAGE 

-    vii 

1 

.       1 

11-20 

21-32 

33-45 

46-59 

60-70 

71-85 

86-101 

102-192 

195 

-     275 

299 

315,  316 

317,  324 

(V) 


164091 


Digitized  by  the  Internet  Archive 

in  2007  with  funding  from 

Microsoft  Corporation 


http://www.archive.org/details/connectivesofengOOfernrich 


INTRODUCTION 


Thought-Connectives 

There  are  certain  words  that  express  the  great 
essentials  of  human  thought,  as  objects,  qualities, 
or  actions;  these  are  nouns,  adjectives,  and  verbs. 
Such  words  must  always  make  up  the  substance  of 
language.  Yet  these  are  dependent  for  their  full 
value  and  utility  upon  another  class  of  words,  the 
thought-connectives,  that  simply  indicate  relation; 
these  are  prepositions,  conjunctions,  relative  pro- 
nouns and  adverbs.  If  we  compare  words  of  the 
former  class  to  the  bricks  that  make  up  the  sub- 
stance of  a  wall,  we  may  compare  those  of  the  latter 
class— the  thought-connectives— to  the  mortar  that 
binds  the  separate  elements  into  the  cohesion  and 
unity  of  a  single  structure. 

The  value  of  these  connectives  may  be  clearly 
manifested  by  simply  striking  them  out  of  any  well- 
known  paragraph  and  showing  the  barrenness  and 
confusion  that  result. 

Thus  b}^  the  omission  of  the  thought-connectives, 
the  first  sentence  of  the  Declaration  of  Independence 
becomes  a  mere  cipher,  capable  of  many  meanings, 
and  needing  a  key  for  its  interpretation,  while  by  the 

(vii) 


viii  Introduction 


restoration  of  the  thought-connectives  the  meaning 
becomes  luminous,  as  in  the  following: 

*'Thc  course  liuman  eyents  becomes 
necessary  one  i>eople  dissolve  the  polit- 
ical bands  have  connected  them  another, 
assume  the  powers  the  earth  the  separate 
equal  station  the  laws  nature  nature's 
God  entitle  them,  a  decent  respect  the 
opinions  man*,  d  requires  they  should 
declare  the  cautjes  impel  them  the  sepa- 
ration." 


"  When,  in  the  course  qf  human  events, 
it*  becomes  necessary  fo7'  one  people  to 
dissolve  the  political  bands  which  have 
connected  them  with  another,  a?id  to 
assume  among  the  powers  of  the  earth 
the  separate  and  equal  station  to  ivJiich 
the  laws  of  nature  and  of  nature's  God 
entitle  them,  a  decent  respect  to  the 
opinions  of  mankind  requires  that  they 
should  declare  the  causes  which  impel 
them  to  the  separation." 

Such  an  example  shows  the  great  importance  of 
prepositions  and  other  connectives  as  the  means  of 
binding  words  into  sentences.  Without  such  helps  all 
speech  would  be  ;made  up  of  brief,  isolated,  and  frag- 
mentary'^ statements.  The  movement  of  thought 
w^ould  be  constantly  and  abruptly  broken.  Much 
would  need  to  be  guessed  at ;  much  would,  after  all, 
be  doubtful  or  obscure;  while  the  mental  difficulty 
involved  in  following  such  statements  would  render 
them  practicallj^  valueless.  For  easy,  effective,  and 
pleasant  reading  or  hearing,  the  mind  needs  to  have 
the  connections  of  thought  clearly  indicated  from 
point  to  point.  The  path  of  discourse  may  be  steep, 
winding,  or  even  intricate,  but  should  always  clearly 
show^  enough  of  forward  reach  to  leave  the  traveler 
in  no  doubt  w^here  to  set  his  foot.  Prepositions,  con- 
junctions, relative  pronouns  and  adverbs  are  the 
ever-recurring  finger-boards  that  point  the  thought 
onward,  or  enable  it  on  occasion  to  retrace  its  way, 
and  make  all  clearer  and  surer  by  turning  backward 

♦  Note.— For  the  connective  force  of  it  in  such  use  see  iNTRODrcTORY  Parti- 
cles in  the  Addenda,  pp.  315,  316. 


Introduction  ix 


for  a  new  start.  At  the  same  time  it  should  be  said 
that  the  discourse  in  which  these  thought-connectives 
are  most  freely  and  wisely  used  is  that  in  which  it 
will  be  found  least  necessary  to  turn  backward  in 
order  to  make  the  meaning  clear  and  sure. 

As  has  been  well  said  by  Austin  Phplps,*  '^The 
wrong  use  or  the  omission  of  connective  words  is 
often  the  occasion  of  looseness  of  style.  The  superior 
precision  of  the  Greek  tongue  is  said,  by  those  who 
are  experts  in  teaching  it,  to  be  in  part  due  to  the 
abundance  of  connectives  in  its  vocabulary.  For 
some  of  its  connective  particles  our  language  has  no 
equivalents ;  yet  such  as  we  have  serve  often  to  knit 
one's  style  together  in  exact  and  forcible  colloca- 
tions. Coleridge  says  that  a  master  of  our  language 
may  be  known  by  his  skilful  use  of  connectives. 
This  is  one  secret  of  the  vigor  of  Coleridge's  own 
style.  His  prolonged  and  involuted  sentences  derive 
from  this  source  often  a  wonderful  continuity,  with- 
out which  his  profound  conceptions  could  not  find 
adequate  expression.  In  order  to  represent  some 
thoughts,  style  needs  a  certain  sw^eep  of  sustained 
expression,  like  the  sailing  of  an  eagle  on  wings  of 
scarcely  visible  vibration.  Such,  often,  is  Coleridge's 
style ;  and  his  command  of  it  is  often  due  to  his  pre- 
cise use  of  connective  words.  It  is  still  more  abun- 
dantly and  grandly  illustrated  in  the  prose  style 
of  Milton.  Hence  arises  the  independence  of  both  of 
fragmentary   expression,  such   as   the   majority   of 


*  English  Style  in  Public  Discourse  ch.  1,  pp.  83,  84. 


Introduction 


writers  would  think  to  be  all  that  some  thoughts 
admit  of  in  human  speech.  Hence  their  freedom  from 
that  which  Southey  calls  the  '  Anglo-Gallican  style, 
whose  cementless  periods  are  understood  beforehand, 
they  are  so  free  from  all  the  connections  of  logic.' 
Dr.  Arnold,  speaking  of  this  feature  in  the  thinking  of 
Coleridge,  says  that  he  would  have  been  more  per- 
fectly understood  if  he  had  written  in  classic  Greek. 
...  No  man  can  be  supremely  eloquent  in  laconics. 
You  can  not  express  the  rising  and  the  expanding 
and  the  sweep  and  the  circling  of  eloquent  feeling,  in 
a  style  resembling  that  which  seamen  call  ^a  chop- 
ping sea.'  For  such  thinking,  you  must  have  at 
command  a  style  of  which  an  oceanic  ground-swell, 
or  the  Gothic  interweaving  of  forest-trees,  is  the 
more  becoming  symbol.  .  .  .  But  you  must  have 
such  a  style  for  the  most  exact  utterance  of  certain 
elevated  and  impassioned  thoughts.  .  .  .  Yet,  in  the 
construction  of  such  a  style,  you  must  use  connect- 
ive words,  links  elaborately  forged,  inserted  in  the 
right  joints  of  style,  to  make  them  flexible  without 
loss  of  compactness.  One  word  of  such  exact  con- 
nective force  in  the  right  place,  with  the  right 
surroundings  before  and  after,  may  make  all  the 
difference  between  a  disjointed  and  a  linked  style." 
The  connective  words,  those  *' links  elaborately 
forged"  through  centuries  as  the  means  of  binding 
words  and  sentences  together  into  a  sti'uctural  unity, 
are  worthy  of  thorough  and  careful  consideration 
such  as  they  have  scarcely  yet  received. 


PART    I 


Xi) 


■\ 


UNIVERSITY 

OF  ^     ,/ 


PART     I 


I— Prepositions :  Their  Office  and  Use 

Among  the  connectives  prepositions  may  be  first  considered, 
since  they  are  used  to  connect  words  rather  than  clauses  or  sen- 
tences. The  preposition  usually  precedes  a  noun  or  pronoun,  to 
which  circumstance  it  owes  its  name,  preposition  being  derived 
from  the  Latin  pre,  before,  and  pono,  place.  The  preposition  is 
a  word  usually  placed  before  another,  which  is  called  its  object, 
and  which  it  is  said  to  "  govern."  * 

Yet  a  little  consideration  will  show  that  this  so-called  **  govern- 
ment "  is  purely  theoretical.  In  the  usage  with  many  pronouns, 
indeed,  the  control  of  the  preposition  over  its  object  appears  in 
the  change  of  case  of  the  following  pronoun,  as  when  we  say 
**^o  him,"  "o/her,"  ''by  us."  But  in  the  expressions  "foit," 
"  of  this,"  **  by  that,"  there  is  absolutely  no  change  in  the  form  of 
the  pronoun.  The  same  is  true  of  all  nouns.  In  the  statements 
^* Brutus  killed  Caesar"  and  "Caesar  was  killed  by  Brutus,^^  the 
noun  Brutus  is  the  same  in  both,  whether  it  stands  as  the  subject 
of  the  verb  or  the  so-called  object  of  the  preposition.  In  the  Latin 
a  decided  difference  appears.  In  that  language  the  first  of  the  two 
statements  above  given  would  be  '^Brutus  Caesarem  interfecit," 
while  the  latter  would  be  '*  Caesar  a  Bruto  interfectus  est,"  the 
nominative  Bmitus  being  changed  to  the  ablative  Bruto  following 
the  preposition  a,  which  is  here  equivalent  to  the  English  by» 
English  grammarians  have  found  it  convenient  to  follow  this 
analogy,  and  to  hold  that  a  noun  with  no  change  of  form  is  in  the 


*  "We  speak  of  both  verbs  and  prepositions  as  governing  in  the  objective  the 
word  that  is  their  object,  because  it  is  compelled  to  be  put  in  that  case  after  them." 
W.  D.  Whitney  Essentials  of  English  Grammar  ch.  3,  p.  32. 

(1) 


2  Prepositions: 


objective  (or  object)  case  when  it  is  construed  with  a  preposition. 
We  might  often  more  fittingly  speak  of  the  consequent  than  of 
the  object  of  an  English  preposition. 

In  one  respect,  indeed,  the  English  usage  of  a  noun  with  a 
preposition  approximates  to  the  Latin  construction,  viz. :  in  ren- 
dering the  words  less  dependent  upon  position.  For  instance,  in 
the  sentence  "Brutus  killed  Caesar,''  the  deperdence  of  the  mean- 
ing upon  the  order  of  the  words  is  absolute.  If  we  say  "Caesar 
killed  Brutus"  we  have  reversed  the  statement.  If  we  say 
"Caesar  Brutus  killed,"  or  ** Brutus  Caesar  killed,"  the  statement 
is  hopelessly  ambiguous,  and  no  one  by  reading  it  could  determine 
which  was  the  slayer  and  which  the  slain.  But  in  the  Latin 
the  meaning  is  not  thus  dependent  upon  the  position  of  the  words. 
Since  the  noun  which  is  in  the  accusative  case  (corresponding 
to  the  English  objective)  really  undergoes  change  of  form,  the 
words  may  be  placed  in  any  order  which  emphasis  or  euphony 
may  require,  and  "Caesarem  Brutus  interfecit,"  "Caesarem  inter- 
fecit  Brutus,"  "Interfecit  Brutus  Caesarem,"  etc.,  would  all  have 
the  unvarying  meaning  "  Brutus  killed  Caesar." 

By  the  use  of  the  preposition  in  English,  we  approach  the 
Latin  freedom  of  construction.  If  the  preposition  directly  precedes 
the  noun  or  pronoun  which  is  its  object,  then  the  phrase  so  con- 
structed may  be  transposed  to  any  position  in  the  sentence  with- 
out changing  its  essential  meaning.  The  statements  "  Caesar  was 
killed  by  Brutus,"  "Caesar  by  Brutus  was  killed,"  "By  Brutus 
was  Caesar  killed,"  are  identical  in  signification. 

The  same  is  true  if  any  modifier,  as  one  or  more  adjectives  or 
a  noun  in  apposition,  intervene  between  the  preposition  and  its 
object,  so  long  as  the  whole  plarase  is  kept  together.  We  may  say 
"by  the  perfidious  Brutus,"  "by  his  professed  friend  Brutus," 
etc.,  and  we  shall  find  that  the  entire  phrase  may  be  transposed  to 
any  position  in  the  sentence  as  freely  as  the  preposition  with  the 
unmodified  noun.  Thus  the  use  of  prepositions  is  especially  im- 
portant in  English  as  contributing  to  a  freedom  and  variety  of 


Their  Office  and  Use  3 


construction  that  in  our  language  could  not  be  otherwise  attained, 
since  we  have  sacrificed  the  case-endings  which  form  so  important 
an  element  of  the  construction  in  the  Latin,  the  Greek,  and  vari- 
ous other  languages. 

The  freedom  of  transposition  of  an  English  prepositional 
phrase  referred  to  above  is,  however,  subject  to  an  important 
limitation.  When  such  prepositional  phrase  directly  limits  a 
noun  or  adjective,  it  can  not  in  many  cases  be  separated  from 
that  noun  or  adjective  without  change  of  meaning.  As  Groold 
Brown  observes,  the  statement  *'  He  rose  heavy  at  heart"  can  not 
be  made  to  read  ^'At  heart  he  rose  heavy."  "The  man  of  learning 
spoke  "  is  not  the  same  as  "  The  man  spoke  of  learning."  Thus  it 
becomes  evident  that  the  preposition  looks  backward  as  well  as 
forward,  and  does  not  exhaust  its  effect  upon  the  word  that 
immediately  follows  it.  The  phrase  '*  fo  John"  conveys  no 
intelligible  idea.  The  mind  instantly  asks,  **What  happened  to 
John?"  To  what  act  or  fact  does  the  **^o"  refer  back?  So  of 
the  phrase  **<o  Richmond"  we  ask  at  once,  *'What  to  Rich- 
mond?" Is  it  *'the  train  <o  Richmond,"  "the  distance  ^o  Rich- 
mond," or  did  some  one  send  or  go  *'  to  Richmond"?  If  we  say 
"by  Henry,"  the  question  is,  "What  was  done  62/ Henry?"  If 
we  say  "o/the  city."  ''in  the  house,"  ''against  the  wind,"  the 
mind  instantly  inquires  what  is  o/,  in,  or  against;  and  so  in  every 
other  possible  case.  Thus  it  appears  that  its  antecedent  is  as  nec- 
essary to  a  preposition  as  its  object  or  consequent,  in  order  to  ex- 
press any  completeness  of  thought.  The  preposition  is  as  truly  a 
connective  as  the  conjunction.  Its  least  office  is  to  limit  the  use 
and  relation  of  the  word  that  follows  it.  Its  chief  value  is  in  the 
connecting  of  that  word  with  some  preceding  term,  thus  binding 
words  together  into  that  unity  of  thought  which  makes  possible 
the  coherent  sentence. 

"  In  one  respect,  the  preposition  is  the  simplest  of  all  the  parts 
of  speech :  in  our  common  schemes  of  grammar,  it  has  neither 
classes  nor  modifications.  Every  connective  word  that  governs 
an  object  after  it,  is  called  a  preposition,  because  it  does  so ;  and 


Prepositions  : 


in  etymological  parsing,  to  name  the  preposition  as  such,  and 
define  the  name,  is,  perhaps,  all  that  is  necessary.  But  in  syntac- 
tical parsing,  in  which  we  are  to  omit  the  definitions,  and  state 
the  construction,  we  ought  to  explain  what  terms  the  preposition 
connects,  and  to  give  a  rule  adapted  to  this  office  of  the  particle. 
It  is  a  palpable  defect  in  nearly  all  our  grammars,  that  their  syn- 
tax contains  no  such  rule,  *  Prepositions  govern  the  objective 
case,'  is  a  rule  for  the  objective  case,  and  not  for  the  syntax  of 
prepositions.  *  Prepositions  show  the  relations  of  words,  and  of 
the  things  or  thoughts  expressed  by  them,'  is  the  principle  fox  the 
latter;  a  principle  which  we  cannot  neglect  without  a  shaineful 
lameness  in  our  interpretation — that  is,  when  we  pretend  to  parse 
syntactically."  * 

Perhaps  the  simplest  statement  would  be :  A  preposition  is  a 
word  that  shows  the  relation  between  an  antecedent  and  a  conse- 
quent in  the  same  sentence. 

Oddly  enough,  the  very  name  preposition  is  a  misnoiAir  in 
English,  since  an  English  preposition  may  follow  the  noun  oi  pro- 
noun which  it  is  said  to  "govern";  and,  in  fact,  the  preposition 
or  *'word  placed  before"  may  be  the  very  last  word  in  the  sen- 
tence, placed  after  everything  else,  while  yet  the  meaning  ^jf-pe'" 
fectly  clear ;  as,  this  is  the  gun  that  he  was  shot  with.  ?j;(anA 
grammarians  have  undertaken  to  fight  this  thoroughly  livj,  an. 
vernacular  idiom,  and  force  the  preposition  into  conformiijg  t.> 
its  name  by  always  standing  before  its  object.  But  the  idiom  is 
stronger-than  the  grammarians.  The  schoolboys  have  invent  d  the 
rebellious  paraphrase,  "  Never  use  a  preposition  to  end  a  sentence 
withJ*^  The  people  go  on  using  the  prohibited  idiom  in  conversation 
every  day,  and  an  examination  of  our  literature  shows  that  this 
idiom  has  the  indorsement  of  the  foremost  writers  of  our  language. 

Ford.  There  is  no  better  way  than  that  they  spoke  of. 
Shakespeare  Merry  Wives  of  Windsor  act  iv,  sc.  4, 1.  22. 

Fenton,  ...  I  have  a  letter  from  her 
Of  such  contents  as  you  will  wonder  at, 
Shakespeare  Merry  Wives  of  Windsor  act  iii,  sc.  6,  1. 18. 


*  Gk)OLD  Brown  Grammar  of  English  Ch'ammars  pt.  iii,  ch.  10,  p.  435. 


Their  Office  and  Use  5 


What  a  taking  was  he  in  when  your  husband  asked  what  was 
in  the  basket ! 

Shakespeare  Merry  Wives  of  Windsor  act  iii,  sc.  3, 1.  183. 

All  is  but  toys  ;  renown  and  grace  is  dead ; 
The  wine  of  life  is  drawn,  and  the  mere  lees 
Is  left  this  vault  to  brag  of. 

Shakespeare  Macbeth  act  ii,  sc.  3, 1.  99. 

O  melancholy ! 
^      Who  ever  yet  could  sound  thy  bottom  ?  find 

The  ooze,  to  show  what  coast  thy  sluggish  crare 
Might  easiliest  harbor  in  9 

Shakespeare  Cymheline  act  iv,  sc.  2, 1,  205. 

^^uch  kindness  as  he  knows  he  regards  her  with,  I  believe. 

Dickens  Nicholas  Nickleby  vol.  ii,  p.  220. 

I  .mging  was  the  worst  use  a  man  could  be  put  to.    Sir  Henry 
WoTj'ON  The  Disparity  between  Buckingham  and  Essex. 

Dost  thou  love  life?    Then  do  not  squander  time,  for  that  is 
the  stuff  life  is  made  of.  Franklin  Poor  Richard's  Almanac, 

'* '  '    ree  things  are  men  most  likely  to  be  cheated  in — ^a  horse,  a 
^<&  And  a  wife.  Franklin  Poor  Richard's  Almanac. 

' /x*e  soil  out  of  which  such  men  as  he  are  made  is  good  to  be 
'born  on,  good  to  live  on,  good  to  die  for  and  to  be  buried  in, 

Lowell  Among  My  Books,  Second  Series,  Oarfleld. 

Oh,  for  boyhood's  time  of  Jime, 
Crowding  years  in  one  brief  moon, 
When  all  things  I  heard  or  saw, 
Me,  their  master,  waited  for, 

Whittier  The  Barefoot  Boy  st.  3. 

I  count  life  just  a  stuff 
To  try  the  soul's  strength  on,  educe  the  man. 

Robert  Browning  In  a  Balcony  1.  642. 

Faliero.  Ay — 

If  that  which  is  not  be,  and  that  which  is 

Be  not,  I  shall  be  :  this  I  doubt  not  of. 

Swinburne  Marino  Faliero  act  iii,  sc.  1. 


Prepositions  : 


Faliero,  .  .  .  But  for  men 

The  eternal  fire  hath  no  such  pang  to  smite 
As  this  their  jests  make  nought  of. 

Swinburne  Marino  Faliero  act  ii,  sc.  1. 

The  virility  and  vigor  of  our  language  are  shown  in  the  obsti- 
nate persistence  of  this  forceful  idiom.  "The  worst  use  a  man 
could  be  put  io  ■'  brings  iiae  and  man,  the  two  important  terms, 
closely  together,  in  a  prominent  place  in  the  sentence,  leaving  the 
note  of  connection  to  be  lightly  appended  at  the  end.  "The 
worst  use  to  which  a  man  could  be  put "  separates  the  important 
words  by  the  uncared-for  particles  to  and  which.  The  mind  hur- 
ries past  the  preposition  and  relative  to  reach  the  important  thing 
referred  to,  finding  the  impediments  of  formal  correctness  very 
much  in  its  way.  Unfettered  and  vigorous  speech  brushes  these 
formalities  aside,  gives  first  place  to  the  words  expressing  the 
important  thought,  and  then  pays  its  grammatical  scot  at  the  end 
of  the  sentence.  It  is  an  element  of  power  in  the  English  lan- 
guage that  it  can  thus  march  across  technicalities  to  attain  the 
great  purpose  of  speech — the  expression  of  thought — securing 
directness  and  emphasis  without  sacrifice  of  clearness 

The  limitation  to  be  put  upon  such  use  applies  not  to  the  prep- 
osition as  such,  but  to  the  use  of  any  small  and  unaccented  word 
at  the  end  of  a  sentence  where  special  dignity,  formality,  or  rhe- 
torical fulness  and  resonance  may  be  required.  The  question  is 
one  of  style  rather  than  of  grammar,  of  emphasis  rather  than  of 
correctness.    See  that  under  Relative  Pronouns,  p.  277. 

"When  a  preposition  begins  or  ends  a  sentence  or  clause,  the 
terms  of  relation,  if  both  are  given,  are  transposed ;  as,  '  To  a  stu- 
dious man  action  is  a  relief.' — Burgh.  That  is,  *  Action  is  a  relief 
to  a  studious  man.'  *  Science  they  (the  ladies)  do  not  pretend  to.' 
— Id.  That  is,  *  They  do  not  pretend  to  science.'  'Until  I  have 
done  that  which  I  have  spoken  to  thee  of.' — Gen.  xxviii,  15.  The 
word  governed  by  the  preposition  is  always  the  subsequent  term 
of  the  relation,  however  it  may  be  placed ;  and  if  this  be  a  relative 
pronoun  the  transposition  is  permanent.  The  preposition,  how- 
ever, may  be  put  before  any  relative,  except  that  and  as;  and 


Their  Office  and  Use 


this  is  commonly  thought  to  be  its  most  appropriate  place  ;  as, 
*  Until  I  have  done  that  of  which  I  have  spoken  to  thee.'  Of  the 
placing  of  it  last  Lowth  fays,  *This  is  an  idiom  which  our  lan- 
guage is  strongly  inclined  to\'  Murray  and  others,  'This  is  an 
idiom  to  which  our  language  is  strongly  inclined';  while  they  all 
add,  *  it  prevails  in  common  conversation  and  suits  very  well  with 
the  familiar  style  in  writing ;  but  the  placing  of  the  preposition 
before  the  relative  is  more  graceful,  as  well  as  more  perspicuous, 
and  agrees  much  better  with  the  solemn  and  elevated  style.'  "* 

Maetzner,  in  his  admirable  English  Grammar  (vol.  ii,  p.  218), 
remarks : 

*'The  syntactical  function  of  prepositions  is  of  the  greatest 
extent  within  the  simple  sentence,  from  which  they  in  great  part 
pass  into  the  construction  as  conjunctions  and  undertake  the  con- 
nection of  its  members,  as  on  the  other  hand  they  may  appear  in 
the  sentence  as  independent  adverbs — ^which  they  are  originally 
in  part." 

This  suggestion  that  the  prepositions  were  originally  adverbs 
seems  eminently  reasonable,  and  is  confirmed  by  the  fact  that 
most  of  the  words  used  as  prepositions  have  also  adverbial  use,  as 
about,  above,  around,  beneath,  etc. 

**  To  a  preposition  the  prior  or  antecedent  term  may  be  a  noun, 
an  adjective,  a  pronoun,  a  verb,  a  participle,  or  an  adverb ;  and 
the  subsequent  or  governed  term  may  be  a  noun,  a  pronoun,  a 
pronominal  adjective,  an  infinitive  verb,  or  a  participle.  In  some 
instances  also,  as  in  the  phrases  in  vain,  on  high,  at  once,  till  now, 
for  ever,  by  hoiv  much,  until  then,  from  thence,  from  above,  we 
find  adjectives  used  elliptically,  and  adverbs  substantively,  after 
the  preposition.  But  in  phrases  of  an  adverbial  character  what  is 
elsewhere  a  preposition  often  becomes  an  adverb."  f 

The  following  quotations  illustrate  the  readiness  with  which  a 
preposition  takes  for  its  object  or  consequent  an  adverb  that  in 
other  use  might  itself  be  a  preposition  or  adverbial  phrase  : 

O  let  thy  graces  without  cease    Drop  from  above, 

Herbert  Grace  st.  1. 


*  GooLD  Brown  Grammar  of  English  Grammars  pt.  iii,  ch.  10,  p.  683. 
t  GooLD  Brown  Grammar  of  English  Grammars  pt.  iii,  ch.  10,  p.  435. 


Prepositions 


Her  battlements  and  towers,  from  off  their  rocky  steep, 
Have  cast  their  trembling  shadows  for  ages  o'er  the  deep. 

Adelaide  Procter  Legemd  of  Bregenz  st.  3. 

When  the  loose  mountain  trembles  front  on  high, 
Shall  gravitation  cease,  if  you  go  by  ? 

Pope  Essay  on  Man  ep.  iv,  1.  128. 

This  world  of  natural  men  is  staked  off  from  the  Spiritual 

World  by  barriers  which  have  never  yet  been  crossed  from  within, 

Drummond  Natural  Law,  Biogenesis  p.  71. 

In  the  following  sentence  the  preposition  evidently  governs  a 
prepositional  phrase : 

A  huge  wave  lifted  us  high  in  the  air,  and,  as  it  slipped  from 
under  the  brig,  down  went  her  forefoot  upon  the  ice. 

I.  I.  Hayes  Arctic  Boat  Journey  ch.  1,  p.  4. 

The  wave  did  not  slip  from  the  brig,  nor  did  it  Siip  under  the 
brig,  but  the  two  ideas  must  be  combined  to  give  the  meaning, 
and  the  words  from  under  have  the  effect  of  a  compound  prepo. 
sition. 

The  first  use  of  prepositions  was  undoubtedly  in  the  designation 
of  place  or  space.  From  this  the  transition  was  easy  to  the  idea 
of  time,  or  of  various  abstract  relations.  From  the  thought  of 
what  is  beyond  a  certain  limit  in  space,  it  is  easy  to  pass  to  the 
idea  of  an  event  beyond  a  certain  limit  in  time.  The  thing  that  is 
above  another  is  easily  thought  of  as  superior,  as  it  is  at  least  in 
elevation.  Hence  we  speak  of  a  thing  as  above  price,  of  a  noble 
person  as  above  a  mean  action,  or  of  the  law  of  Grod  as  above  the 
laws  of  man.  So,  conversely,  goods  may  be  sold  under  price,  o/ 
an  action  may  be  beneath  contempt.  Such  extension  of  meaning 
is  but  a  part  of  that  system  of  unstudied  metaphor  that  pervades 
all  language,  making  words  which  at  first  expressed  only  material 
facts  or  relations  to  become  the  vehicles  of  mental  and  spiritual 
ideas. 

*'  If  our  purpose  were  to  give  a  learner  his  first  idea  of  a  prepo- 
sition, we  might  say  that  it  is  a  word  which  expresses  the  relation 


Their  Office  and  Use  9 


of  one  thing  to  another  in  respect  of  place  or  position.    We  might 
go  on  to  illustrate  by  saying : 

"  *  The  house  stands  upon  rising  ground.  There  is  a  lawn  be- 
fore the  door,  a  veranda  along  one  side  of  the  house,  behind  it  an 
apple  orchard  bending  under  the  weight  of  its  ruddy  fruit.  Below 
the  orchard  the  river  flows  between  rocky  banks,  and  beyond  it 
rises  a  steep  woody  hill.  A  little  up  the  stream  there  is  a  bridge 
across  it,  so  high  that  boats  can  pass  beneath  it.' 

**  We  might  next  explain  what  is  so  very  common  that  a  device 
found  to  serve  well  for  one  purpose  is  apt  to  be  applied  to  many 
others.  So  many  other  relations  besides  those  of  place  are 
expressed  by  prepositions.  Thus  there  are  relations  of  time — 
before  noon  ;  beticeen  dawn  and  sunrise ;  during  the  eclipse ; 
after  the  Revolution.  Before  frost,  before  rain,  after  taking  the 
oath,  are  but  slight  modifications  of  the  same.  Prepositions  also 
express  cause,  instrumentality,  manner,  and  purpose, 

**  *  The  house  was  struck  by  lightning.' 
**  *  It  was  all  through  love  of  fame.' 
**  *  They  fled  for  fear  of  discovery.' 
"  *  The  letter  was  sealed  with  wax.' 
"  *  She  prayed  unth  zeal  and  fervor.' 
"  *  They  were  working  for  an  education.' 

**  Prepositions  thus  take  a  variety  of  secondary  meanings. 
*'  Through  has  not  the  same  signification  in  : 

**  *  I  was  walking  through  a  wood ' 
and 

**  *  They  betrayed  him  through  envy.' 

So  one  may  walk  with  a  lady,  urith  difficulty,  with  a  limp,  icith  a 
cane,  with  a  sprained  ankle."  * 

"  Now,  if  prepositions  are  concerned  in  expressing  the  various 
relations  of  so  many  of  the  different  parts  of  speech,  multiplied, 
as  these  relations  must  be,  by  that  endless  variety  of  combinations 
which  may  be  given  to  the  terms,  and  if  the  sense  of  the  writer 
or  speaker  is  necessarily  mistaken  as  often  as  any  of  these  rela- 
tions are  misunderstood  or  their  terms  misconceived,  how  shall 
we  estimate  the  importance  of  a  right  explanation  and  a  right  use 
of  this  part  of  speech  ?  "  f 


*  Samuel  Ramsey  The  English  Language  and  English  Orammar  ch.  8,  p.  485^ 
t  GooLD  Brown  Grammar  of  English  Grammars  pt.  iii,  ch.  10,  p.  435. 


10  Prepositions 


How  admirably  has  Byron,  in  his  **  Prisoner  of  Chillon,"  lit  up 
his  description  of  the  *  little  isle "  by  the  fine  choice  of  preposi- 
tions : 

*♦  And  then  there  was  a  little  isle 
Which  in  my  very  face  did  smile, 

The  only  one  in  view ; 
A  small  green  isle,  it  seemed  no  more, 
Scarce  broader  than  my  dungeon  floor, 
But  in  it  there  were  three  tall  trees. 
And  o'er  it  blew  the  mountain  breeze. 
And  by  it  there  were  waters  flowing, 
And  on  it  there  were  young  flowers  growing, 

Of  gentle  breath  and  hue." 


II— Prepositions  Defined  and  Illustrated 

The  principal  English  prepositions  are  the  following : 
a^etftj  aboard,  about,  above,  across,  after,  against,  along,  amid 
or  amidst,  among  or  amongst,  around  (see  also  round),  aslant, 
at,  athyjdrt, 

Barring,  baWig,  before,  behind,  below,  beneath,  beside  or 
besides,  between,  betwixt,  beyond,  but  (compare  except),  by, 

Concerning,  considering, 

Dovm,  during, 

Ere,  except,  excepting  (compare  but), 

For,  from. 

In,  inside,  into, 

Mid,  midst, 

Notwithstanding, 

Of,  off,  on  (compare  upon),  out,  outside,  over,  overthwart, 

Past,  pending,  per, 

Regarding,  respecting,  round  (compare  around), 

Save,  saving,  since, 

Through,  throughout,  till  (compare  until),  to  (compare  unto), 
touching,  toward  or  towards. 

Under,  underneath,  until  (compare  till),  unto  (compare  to), 
up,  upon  (compare  on). 

Via, 

With,  within,  without. 

In  addition  to  these,  there  are  many  prepositional  phrases, 
which,  v/hile  they  may  be  easily  separated  into  their  elements,  are 
yet  always  used  as  phrases,  and  have  all  the  effect  of  compound 
prepositions;  as,  according  to,  in  accordance  icith,  on  account  of, 
because  of,  with  or  in  respect  to,  in  consideration  of,  in  spite  of, 
by  means  of,  with  or  in  regard  to,  in  default  of,  in  consequence 

ai) 


abaft  Prepositions  12 

o/,  tvith  or  in  reference  to,  as  to,  etc.  The  meaning  of  such 
phrases  is  usually  evident  from  a  knowledge  of  the  separate  words, 
and  need  not  be  particularly  explained. 

As  this  work  is  designed  for  popular  utility  and  ready  refer- 
ence, it  has  been  thought  best  to  take  up  the  prepositions  and 
other  words  discussed  in  alphabetical  order,  rather  than  in  the 
order  of  their  importance  or  of  any  system  of  philosophical  classi- 
fication. The  alphabetical  is  the  simplest  of  all  arrangements, 
and  leaves  the  reader  in  no  doubt  where  to  turn.  He  has  only  to 
know  how  a  word  is  spelled,  when  he  may  seek  and  find  it  as  in  a 
dictionary. 

In  the  quotations,  prominence  is  given  to  the  Anglican  or 
Authorized  Version  of  the  English  Bible  as  an  acknowledged 
authority  of  pure  Elizabethan  English.  With  this  are  especially 
associated  Shakespeare  and  Milton,  while  numerous  authors  of 
eminence,  both  English  and  American,  are  appealed  to  as  authority 
for  the  statements  made. 

ABAFT 

This  nautical  preposition  is  very  ancient,  and  is  derived  from 
aft  or  ceftan,  back,  behind,  after,  first  reinforced  by  the  prefix  he- 
ox  hi-,  by,  near,  forming  haft,  which  was  in  use  as  a  separate  word 
in  the  fourteenth  century.  This  was  further  reinforced  by  the 
prefix  a-,  on  or  at,  forming  the  word  abaft.  The  most  common 
application  of  this  word  is  to  denote  that  which  is  on  the  after- 
part  of  a  ship  or  other  vessel,  or  which  is  farther  aft  than  the 
object  of  the  preposition ;  as : 

TJhe  black  cook  .  .  ,  had  a  bunk  just  abaft  the  galley. 

Coffin  Old  Sailor's  Yarns  ch.  4,  p.  31. 

That  is,  the  black  cook's  bunk  was  a  little  farther  aft  than  the 
galley. 

[This  term  (abaft)  is  not  used  with  reference  to  things  out  of 
the  ship.    Young  Naut,  Diet,] 

Objects  outside  of  and  directly  behind  a  ship  are  commonly 
spoken  of  as  astern  of  the  ship.    But  there  is  a  broadly  inclusive 


13  Defined  and  Illustrated  aboard 

use  of  the  word  abaft  in  the  phrase  abaft  the  beam,  which  is 
prepositional  in  form,  but  adverbial  in  sense.  If  a  line  be  drawn 
directly  across  a  vessel  at  right  angles  to  the  keel  till  it  intersects 
the  horizon  on  each  side,  and  if  the  line  of  the  keel  be  prolonged 
directly  astern  till  it,  too,  cuts  the  horizon,  then  any  object  between 
the  cross-line  and  the  stern-line  on  the  right-hand  side  may  be 
described  as  *'  to  starboard  abaft  the  beani,^^  and  any  object  in  the 
corresponding  place  on  the  left  as  "to  port  abaft  the  beamJ*^ 

The  wind  is  aft  through  the  northeast,  just  abaft  the  beam. 
Maury  Physical  Geography  of  the  Sea  xv,  642. 

Murray's  New  English  Dictionary, 

ABOARD 

Aboard,  like  abaft,  is  distinctly  a  nautical  preposition.  It  is 
compounded  of  the  prefix  a-,  on,  plus  the  noun  board,  and  is 
thus  equivalent  to  the  fuller  prepositional  phrase  on  board  of. 

Of  place  exclusively : 

1.  Upon  the  deck  of,  or  within  the  boards  or  sides  of  (a  ship 
or  other  vessel). 

Aboard  my  galley  I  invite  you  all. 
Shakespeare  Antony  and  Cleopatra  act  11,  sc.  6, 1.  104. 

He  had  ten  carpenters  with  him,  most  of  which  were  found 
aboard  the  prize  they  had  taken. 

De  Foe  Captain  Singleton  ch.  13,  p.  165. 

The  prepositional  phrase  aboard  of  is  also  often  used : 

He  came  aboard  of  my  ship. 

De  Foe  Captain  Singleton  ch.  12,  p.  151. 

A  boat  went  aboard  of  the  Ayacucho  and  brought  off  a  quarter 
of  beef.  Dana  Two  Years  before  the  Mast  ch.  9,  p.  45. 

2.  By  extension  on,  upon,  or  in  any  conveyance;  as,  come 
aboard  the  car ;  we  can  talk  when  we  get  aboard  the  train. 

3.  Across  or  alongside  of :  a  secondary  nautical  meanin.c,- ;  as, 
to  lay  the  ship  aboard  the  enemy. 


about 


Prepositions  14 


ABOUT 

About  is  derived  from  the  Anglo-Saxon  dbutan,  which  is  com- 
posed of  an-j  on,  plus  butan,  outside.  About  thus  signifies  directly 
and  literal  J  y  on  the  outside  of. 

I.  Of  place  or  space  : 

1.  Surrounding  (an  object)  on  all  sides,  so  as  to  encircle  it, 
equivalent  to  around  or  all  around. 

Set  bounds  about  the  mount.  Ex.  xix,  23. 

He  made  a  trench  about  the  altar.  1  Kings  xviii,  32. 

The  chain  he  drew  was  clasped  about  his  middle. 

Dickens  Christmas  Carol  st.  1,  p.  22. 

A  chain  of  gold  about  his  neck.  Dan.  v,  7. 

A  leathern  girdle  apout  his  loins.  Matt,  iii,  4. 

Like  one  who  wraps  the  drapery  of  his  couch 
About  him,  and  lies  down  to  pleasant  dreams. 

Bryant  Thanatopsis  1.  81. 

It  was  found  necessary  to  erect  a  stockade  about  the  town-hall 
and  to  plant  caltrops  and  other  obstructions  in  the  squares  and 
streets.  Motley  John  of  Barneveld  vol.  ii,  ch.  14,  p.  135. 

2.  Here  and  there  around  ;  on  various  sides  ;  encompassing. 

When  my  children  were  about  me.  Job  xxix,  5. 

The  parts  of  Libya  about  Gyrene.  Acts  ii,  10. 

About  the  new-arrived,  in  multitudes,    The  ethereal  people  ran. 

Milton  Paradise  Lost  bk.  x,  1.  28. 

The  heathen  that  were  about  us.  Neh.  v,  17. 

Getting  into  a  beaked  ship,  he  [Caius]  sailed  to  and  fro,  striking 
and  sinking  the  vessels  which  lay  about  the  bridge. 

Keightley  Roman  Empire  pt.  i,  ch.  4,  p.  72. 

Mere  facts  .  .  .  are  the  stones  heaped  about  the  mouth  of  the 
well  in  whose  depth  truth  reflects  the  sky. 

E.  C.  Stedman  Nature  and  Elements  of  Poetry  ch.  6,  p.  106. 

The  solitary  sandpipers  .  .  .  appear  to  have  a  special  fondness 
for  stagnant  pools  in  and  about  the  woods. 

B.  H.  Warren  Birds  of  Pennsylvania^  Sandpiper  p.  90. 


15  Defined  and  Illustrated  about 

3.  In  motion  around ;  moving  so  as  to  encircle  or  pass  around ; 
as,  the  movement  of  the  earth  about  the  smi. 

The  slingers  went  about  it,  and  smote  it.  ^  Kings  iii,  25. 

We  count  for  poets  ...  all 

Who  wind  the  robes  of  ideality 
About  the  bareness  of  their  lives. 

Jean  Ingelow  Gladys  st,  44. 

Men  dance  the  carmagnole  all  night  about  the  bonfire. 

Carlyle  French  Revolution  vol.  iii,  bk.  v,  ch.  4,  p.  192. 

Now  wail  low  winds  about  the  forest  eaves. 

Elaine  Goodale  Fringed  Gentian  st.  4. 

The  choughs  that  call  about  the  shining  cliff. 

Coventry  Patmore  St.  Valentine's  Day  1.  28. 

4.  In  motion  on,  upon,  or  over  ;  to  and  fro  upon ;  here  and 
there  around;  to  or  toward  all  sides  of;  as,  peddling  goods  about 
the  country;  wandering  about  the  world;  look  about  you. 

Smite  about  it  with  a  knife.  Ezek,  v,  2. 

The  mourners  go  about  the  streets.  Eccl.  xii,  5. 

The  watchmen  that  went  about  the  city.  Cant,  v,  7. 

Walk  about  Zion  and  go  round  about  her.  Psalm  xlviii,  12. 

In  about  ten  days  [the  captain]  was  entirely  well  and  about 
the  ship.  De  Foe  Captain  Singleton  ch.  11,  p.  139. 

Every  glib  and  loquacious  hireling  who  shows  strangers  about 
their  picture-galleries,  palaces,  and  ruins  is  called  a  '  cicerone,' 
or  a  Cicero.  Trench  On  the  Study  of  Words  lect.  iii,  p.  88. 

Shopping  about  the  city,  ransacking  entire  depots  of  splendid 
merchandise,  and  bringing  home  a  ribbon. 

Hawthorne  House  of  Seven  Gables  ch.  12,  p.  188. 

The  tombs  of  the  ancient  Electors  were  broken  open:  the  corpses, 
stripped  of  their  cerecloths  and  ornaments,  were  dragged  about 
the  streets.  Macaulay  England  vol.  iv,  ch.  20,  p.  343. 

Jesus  saw  great  multitudes  about  him.  Matt,  viii,  18. 

Pure  inspirations  of  morn    Breathed  about  them. 

Owen  Meredith  Lucile  pt.  i,  can.  4,  st.  6. 


^^'/VER3ITY  I 


about  Prepositions  16 

She  saw  the  tattered  banners  falling    About  the  broken  staffs. 

R.  W.  Gilder  Decoration  Day  st.  1. 

5,  Somewhere  within  a  circle  bounding ;  on  some  side  of ; 
beside;  close  to;  somewhere  near;  at,  in,  or  by;  as,  idlers  hanging 
about  the  door;  there  is  a  man  about  the  house. 

There  was  no  room  to  receive  them,  no,  not  so  much  as  about 
the  door.  Mark  ii,  2. 

They  that  were  about  him  with  the  twelve.  Mark  iv,  10, 

6.  Hence,  specifically,  on  or  near  the  person  of;  in  possession 
of;  attending;  connected  with;  with;  at  hand;  as,  I  have  not  the 
money  about  me. 

If  you  have  this  about  you, 
(As  I  will  give  you  when  we  go,)  you  may 
Boldly  assault  the  necromancer's  hall. 

Milton  Comus  1.  647. 

For  besides  the  wasteness  of  the  silence,  motionless  machines 
have  a  look  of  death  about  them. 

MacDonald  Robert  Falconer  ch.  17,  p.  132. 

About  his  ordinary  bearing  there  was  a  certain  fling,  ...  a 
confidence  in  his  own  powers. 

George  Eliot  Middlemarch  vol.  i,  bk.  ii,  ch.  13,  p.  137. 

II,  Of  time :  indefinitely  near  to ;  approximating  to ;  near ; 
close  to ;  not  far  from  :  an  extension  into  a  kindred  realm  of  the 
usage  regarding  place  (I.,  6) ;  as,  about  noon ;  about  a  year  ago. 

He  went  out  about  the  sixth  and  ninth  hour.  Matt  xx,  5. 

About  the  fourth  watch  of  the  night.  Mark  vi,  48. 

Be  you  in  the  park  about  midnight. 

Shakespeare  Merry  Wives  of  Windsor,  act  v,  sc.  1,  1.  12. 

About  that  time,  Herod  the  king  stretched  forth  his  hand  to 
vex  certain  of  the  church.  Acts  xii,  1. 

About  midnight  the  shipmen  deemed  that  they  drew  near  to 
some  country.  Acts  xxvii,  27. 

And  it  was  about  the  space  of  three  hours  after.  Acts  v,  7. 


17  Defined  and  Illustrated  about 

About  the  year  180  of  our  era,  we  have  from  a  great  churchman 
[Irenaeus]  the  most  express  testimony  to  the  Four  Gospels  of  our 
canon.  Matthew  Arnold  God  and  the  Bible  p.  191. 

III,  Of  quantity,  approximating  to ;  approaching ;  not  far 
from  ;  not  much  more  or  less  than  ;  near  ;  close  to  :  an  extension 
of  the  usage  in  reference  to  place,  I.,  5,  6,  and  to  time,  II. 

They  that  had  eaten  were  about  four  thousand  men. 

Mark  viii,  9. 

Jesus  began  to  be  about  thirty  years  of  age.  Luke  iii,  23. 

When  they  had  rowed  about  five  and  twenty  or  thirty  furlongs. 

John  vi,  19. 

A  number  of  men,  about  four  hundred.  Acts  v,  36. 

And  all  the  men  were  about  twelve.  Acts  xix,  7. 

SiL  How  tall  was  she  ?    Jul,  About  my  stature. 

Shakespeare  Two  Gentlemen  of  Verona  act  iv,  sc.  4. 

Camas,  ...  a  bulbous  root  about  the  size  of  a  small  onion,  .  .  , 
when  roasted  and  ground,  is  made  into  bread  by  the  Indians,  and 
has  a  taste  somewhat  like  cooked  chestnuts. 

P.  H.  Sheridan  Memoirs  vol.  i,  eh.  4,  p.  54. 

IV,  Of  various  relations  : 

1.  In  connection  with ;  engaged  in ;  occupied  with ;  interfer- 
ing with  ;  concerned  in  ;  prosecuting ;  undertaking ;  endeavoring 
to  do  :  compare  I.,  5,  6,  and  IV.,  2. 

I  must  be  about  my  Father's  business.  Luke  ii,  49. 

The  prince  himself  is  about  a  piece  of  iniquity. 

Shakespeare  Winter's  Tale  act  iv,  sc.  4,  1.  693. 

Martha  was  cumbered  about  much  serving,  .  .  .  careful  and 
troubled  about  many  things.  Luke  x,  40,  41. 

But  why  should  I  bother  about  my  ancestors  ?  I  am  sure  they 
never  bothered  about  me. 

H.  James,  Jr.  The  American  ch.  17,  p.  298. 

2.  Having  relation  to ;  in  reference  to ;  concerning ;  touching ; 
regarding  ;  respecting  ;  on  account  of  ;  because  of ;  as,  to  talk, 
think,  or  know  about ;  to  be  angry  about,    (Compare  AT.) 


abont  Prepositions  18 

Then  there  arose  a  question  between  some  of  John's  disciples 
and  the  Jews  about  purifying.  John  Hi,  25. 

They  determined  that  Paul  and  Barnabas  .  .  .  should  go  up  to 
Jerusalem  unto  the  apostles  and  elders  about  this  question. 

ActsKVy  2. 

There  arose  no  small  stir  about  that  way.  Acts  xix,  23. 

If  the  real  climbers  are  ever  to  be  differentiated  from  the 
crowd  who  write  and  talk  about  the  mountains,  it  is  only  to  be 
done  by  dispensing  with  professional  assistance. 

Tyndall  Hours  of  Exercise  ch.  22,  p.  259. 

A  man's  wife  and  his  oldest  friend  generally  know  something 
about  his  real  nature,  its  besetting  temptations,  .  .  .  and  its  pos- 
sibilities. Wm.  Black  Princess  of  Thule  ch.  19,  p.  309. 

On  Saturday  she  was  in  a  terrible  taking  about  the  cholera ; 
talked  of  nothing  else. 

Macaulay  in  Trevelyan's  T.  B,  Macaulay  vol.  i,  ch.  4,  p.  214. 

Some  parts  of  Colonel  Stephen's  letter,  about  reinforcements, 
.  .  .  were  only  meant  as  a  finesse  in  case  they  should  fall  into  the 
enemy's  hands.     Washington  in  Sparks's  Writings  of  Washing 
ton  vol.  ii,  pt.  i,  p.  156. 

They  told  me  what  a  fine  thing  it  was  to  be  an  Englishman, 
and  about  liberty  and  property,  .  .  .  and  T  find  it  is  all  a  flam. 

W.  Godwin  Caleb  Williams  vol.  ii,  ch.  5,  p.  57. 

How  much  more  amiable  is  the  American  fidgetiness  and  anxi- 
ety about  the  opinion  of  other  nations  .  .  .  than  the  John  Bullism 
which  affects  to  despise  the  sentiments  of  the  rest  of  the  world  I 

Coleridge  Table  Talk  Aug.  20, 1830. 

About  may  be  preceded  by  from,  the  phrase  with  about  being 
viewed  as  a  unity,  a  single  designation  of  locality,  time,  etc. 

Get  you  up  from  about  the  tabernacle  of  Korah,  Dathan,  and 
Abiram.  Num.  xvi.  24. 

In  the  denoting  of  locality,  the  combination  round  about  was 
formerly  very  common,  round  intensifying  the  original  idea  of 
surrounding  or  encompassing  contained  in  about. 

The  cities  that  were  round  about  them.  Gen,  xxv,  5. 


19  Defined  and  Illustrated  abont 

The  Egyptians  digged  round  about  the  river.  Ex,  vii,  24. 

The  Levites  shall  pitch  round  about  the  tabernacle.  Num,  i,  53. 

And,  behold,  the  mountain  was  full  of  horses  and  chariots  of 
fire  round  about  Elisha.  ^  Kings  vi,  17. 

Heme  the  hunter  .  .  . 
Doth  all  the  winter  time,  at  still  midnight, 
Walk  round  about  an  oak. 
Shakespeare  Merry  Wives  of  Windsor  act  iv,  sc.  4, 1.  30. 

.  .  .  Through  a  cloud, 
Drawn  round  about  thee  like  a  radiant  shrine. 

Milton  Paradise  Lost  bk.  iii,  1.  378. 

Verbs  and  Other  Antecedents 

Among  the  vast  number  of  verbs  that  may  be  followed  by 
about,  its  use  in  other  than  the  local  sense  is  especially  worthy  of 
notice  in  connection  with  the  following  verbs:  see,  ask,  seek, 
hear,  talk,  write,  inquire,  contend,  consult,  think,  know,  care,  to 
disturb  oneself,  worry,  fret,  cowpiain,  etc. 

Adjectives  and  nouns  allied  to  these  verbs  also  freely  take  the 
prepobition  about ;  as,  inquisitive,  contentious,  thoughtful,  in- 
formed (well  or  ill),  anxious,  solicitous,  disturbed,  worried, 
angry,  interested,  etc.  Thoughtful  also  takes  for:  thoughtful 
about  the  business,  thoughtful  for  his  friend.  Angry,  distutbed, 
worried,  and  the  like  also  take  at.  Interested  may  be  followed 
by  in;  worried,  disturbed,  etc.,  may  take  by  with  reference  to 
agency ;  as,  disturbed  by  callers.  Thought,  anxiety,  worry,  in- 
quiry, question,  contention,  quarrel,  disturbance,  complaint, 
anger,  etc.,  also  readily  take  about  before  the  object  concerned. 
The  noun  interest  is,  however,  commonly  followed  by  in,  as  the 
verb  and  the  participle  interested  may  readily  be. 

Distinctions 
About — around:    As  used  of  place,  these   prepositions   are 
often  interchangeable.    We  may  speak  of  the  earth's  revolution 
about  or  around  (or  round)  the  sun.    As  far  as  a  distinction  can 


about  Prepositions  20 

be  drawn,  it  would  seem  to  be  that  around  keeps  closer  to  the 
suggestion  of  surrounding,  encircling  movement,  while  about 
more  readily  applies  to  distributed  activity  touching  here  and 
there  ;  to  travel  around  the  earth  is  to  encircle  it ;  to  travel  about 
the  earth  is  to  go  in  various  directions  here  and  there  over  it. 
About — of— on :    See  ON. 


Ill— Prepositions  Defined  and  Illustrated 

ABOVE 

Above  is  from  the  Anglo-Saxon  dhufan,  which  is  compounded 
of  an,  on,  plus  hufan,  above. 

I.  Of  place  or  space  : 

1.  Vertically  over,  without  reference  to  distance;  higher 
than ;  on  the  top  of ;  over ;  as,  the  heaven  above  us ;  the  boards 
are  piled  one  above  another. 

Fowl  that  may  fly  above  the  earth.  Gen.  i,  20. 

Above  it  stood  the  seraphim.  Isaiah  vi,  2. 

By  the  sky  that  hangs  above  our  heads. 

Shakespeare  King  John  act  ii,  sc.  2,  1.  897. 

The  stars  above  us  govern  our  conditions. 

Shakespeare  King  Lear  act  iv,  sc.  8, 1.  85. 

Hell  opens  and  the  heavens  in  vengeance  crack 

Above  his  head.  Wordsworth  Sonnets  xxxii. 

Above  the  tide,  each  broadsword  bright 
Was  brandishing  like  beam  of  light. 

Scott  Lady  of  the  Lake  can.  6,  st.  18. 

2,  Rising  beyond  the  level  of  (though  not  vertically  over) ; 
more  elevated  than ;  higher  than ;  measured  up  from  the  level  of ; 
as  said  of  a  stream,  nearer  to  the  source ;  as,  mountains  rising 
above  the  plain ;  two  thousand  feet  above  the  sea. 

Seek  not  to  crop  above  the  heads  of  men 
To  be  a  better  mark  for  envy's  shafts. 

Joaquin  Miller  Ina  act  i,  sc.  2. 

My  adventurous  song. 
That  with  no  middle  flight  intends  to  soar 
Above  the  Aonian  mount. 

Milton  Paradise  Lost  bk.  i,  1.  15. 


above 


Prepositions  22 


Still  her  gray  rocks  tower  above  the  sea 
That  crouches  at  their  feet. 

Fitz-Greene  Halleck  Connecticut  st.  1. 

Since  the  tertiary  period  two-thirds  of  Europe  have  been  lifted 
above  the  sea.  Draper  Intell.  Devel.  Eur.  vol.  i,  ch.  2,  p.  31. 

Harar  ...  is  situated  on  a  table-land,  5,500  feet  above  the  sea, 
whence  the  climate  is  dry,  temperate  and  healthy. 

Bayard  Taylor  Lake  Regions  Cent,  Afr.  ch.  2,  p.  8. 

A  station  which  raises  a  man  too  eminently  above  the  level  of 
his  fellow-creatures  is  not  the  most  favorable  to  moral  or  to  intel- 
lectual qualities.  De  Quincky  Opium-Eater  prelim. ,  p.  55. 

3,  Farther  north  than  :  with  indirect  reference  to  position  on 
a  map;  as,  all  the  land  above  the  fortieth  parallel  of  north  latitude. 

The  terminus  of  the  7th  range  falls  upon  that  [the  Ohio]  river, 
9  miles  above  the  Muskingum.      Morse  Am.  Geography  I,  p.  458. 

II.  Of  time: 

1.  Exceeding  (a  specified  period);  more  than;  beyond;  as,  it 
lasted  above  three  hours. 

It  was  never  acted;  or,  if  it  was,  not  above  once. 

Shakespeare  Hamlet  act  ii,  sc.  2, 1.  440. 

2.  Rarely,  more  ancient  than:  with  indirect  reference  to 
position  in  a  tabulated  list  of  dates;  as,  the  period  above  the  six- 
teenth century. 

III.  Of  various  relations : 

1.  Superior  to;  more  than;  in  excess  of;  surpassing;  exceed- 
ing; beyond;  over: 

(a)  In  number  or  quantity;  as,  blessings  above  measure;  above 
500  yards. 

In  person,  the  pedler  was  a  man  above  the  middle  height. 

Cooper  The  Spy  oh.  3,  p.  41. 

The  general  direction  is  S.  E.  for  above  400  miles. 

Lippincotfs  Gazetteer  1903,  p.  1592, 
(5)  Of  sounds : 

(1)  Higher  in  pitch  than;  as,  above  concert  pitch. 


33  Defined  and  Illustrated  above 

Above  the  hum  of  the  multitude  and  the  roll  of  the  drums,  rose 
the  clear  and  ringing  blasts  of  the  cavalry  bugles. 

J.  E.  Cooke  Surry  of  Eagle's  Nest  ch.  123,  p.  444. 

(2)  Surpassing  in  volume,  clearness,  or  intensity;  audible  be- 
yond; as,  the  captain's  voice  rang  out  above  the  din;  above  all 
other  sounds  was  heard  the  cannon's  roar. 

(c)  In  quality  or  excellence;  as,  virtue  is  above  price. 

But  mercy  is  above  this  sceptred  sway, 
It  is  enthroned  in  the  hearts  of  kings. 
Shakespeare  Merchant  of  Venice  act  iv,  sc.  1, 1. 192. 

The  instinct  of  the  chivalrous  gentleman  asserted  itself  above 
the  dread  of  death  or  the  feeling  of  rank. 

NicoLAY  AND  Hay  Abraham  Lincoln  vol.  ix,  ch.  10,  p.  232. 

(d)  In  authority,  rank,  or  power;  as,  the  king  is  above  the 
subject;  the  moral  is  above  the  civil  law. 

The  law  of  self-defence  is  above  every  other  law. 

Burke  Speeches,  Impeachment  of  Hastings  vol.  ii,  p.  181. 
Not  now  as  a  servant,  but  above  a  servant,  a  brother  beloved. 

Philemon  16. 
2.  Beyond  the  reach,  power,  or  influence  of;  as,  above  reproach; 
above  calumny;  a&ot;e  suspicion;  a6oi?e  a  base  suggestion. 

Thou  hast  a  charmed  cup,  O  Fame  I 

A  draught  that  mantles  high, 
And  seems  to  lift  this  earthly  frame 

Above  mortality. 
Away  I  to  me  —  a  woman — bring 
Sweet  water  from  affection's  spring. 

Mrs.  Hemans  Woman  and  Fams, 

— while  I  hear 
This,  this  is  holy ; 
These  vespers  of  another  year, 
This  hymn  of  thanks  and  praise, 
My  spirit  seems  to  mount  above 
The  anxieties  of  human  love, 
And  earth's  precarious  days. 
Wordsworth  Poems  of  Sentiment  and  Reflection  xxvi,  st.  4. 

Caesar's  wife  should  be  above  suspicion. 

Plutarch  Life  of  Ccesar  ch.  x. 


above  PREPOSITIONS  24 

Distinctions 

Above — on — over — up — upon:  Above  is  the  most  inclusive  of 
these  prepositions.  It  can  ordinarily  be  substituted  for  on,  upon, 
or  over;  as,  the  boards  were  piled  one  on  or  upon  another  (one 
above  another);  the  hawk  flies  over  the  wood  (above  the  wood). 
But  it  will  be  seen  that  while  above  is  more  inclusive  it  is  less 
definite;  the  boards  laid  one  on  another  are  in  contact,  but  when 
laid  one  above  another,  they  may  not  touch.  Over  contains  often 
an  intimation,  though  it  may  be  slight,  of  extension  or  motion 
across,  while  above  may  simply  imply  greater  elevation.  If  we  say, 
the  mountain  towers  above  the  plain,  we  think  only  of  its  height;, 
but  if  we  say,  the  mountain  towers  over  the  plain,  we  think  of  the 
plain  as  in  the  shadow  of  the  mountain  and  dominated  by  it.  So 
we  say  the  mountain  is  7,000  feet  above  the  sea,  where  it  would 
be  impossible  to  say  7,000  feet  over  the  sea.  Up  implies  ascending 
motion;  as,  the  ship  sailed  up  the  river,  where  above  or  over  could 
not  be  used. 

[Above  has  reference  to  a  higher  position  in  space. 

Over  relates  to  an  extension  along  the  superior  surface  of 
another  object. 

Upon  relates  to  the  contact  of  a  body  with  the  superior  surface 
of  another. 

Beyond  refers  to  the  gi-eater  distance  of  a  body. 

Above  does  not  carry  the  idea  of  contact  with  a  body  below  it; 
over  may  or  may  not  carry  the  idea. 

Figuratively,  above  conveys  the  idea  of  superiority;  as,  *'The 
prince  is  above  the  peasant";  over,  the  idea  of  authority;  as,  "The 
church  has  over  her,  bishops"  (South). 

Upon,  the  idea  of  immediate  influence;  as,  "The  effect  of 
oratory  upon  an  audience";  beyond,  the  idea  of  extent;  as,  "The 
power  of  Providenc'e  'beyond  the  stretch  of  human  thought'" 
(Thomson). 

Above  and  over  are  sometimes  used  interchangeably;  as,  "  The 
sky  above  us,  or  over  us."  ^^ Above  ten  thousand  men  were  in  the 
army."  "He  was  seen  of  above  five  hundred  brethren  at  once" 
(i  Cor.  XV,  6). 

More  than,  upwards  of,  are  also  used  by  good  writers. 

Fallows  100,000  Synonyms  and  Antonyms,] 


25  Defined  and  Illustrated  across 

For  the  contrasted  prepositions  below—beneath — down — under 
— underneath,  see  Distinctions  under  beneath. 

Above — beyond :  In  the  metaphorical  use,  we  speak  of  a  person 
as  being  above  suspicion.  We  speak  of  an  act  or  fact  as  being 
beyond  controversy,  dispute,  doubt,  or  question.  A  thing  may  be 
said  to  be  either  above  or  beyond  price. 

ACROSS 

Across  is  derived  from  the  noun  cross  joined  with  the  prefix 
a-,  on,  representing  the  Anglo-Saxon  aw,  on;  t.  c,  on  a  cross,  in 
the  manner  of  a  cross. 

I,  Of  place  or  space : 

1.  Passing  through  or  over  the  surface  of,  so  as  to  cross  it; 
crossing;  in  the  direction  of  a  crossing  line  or  movement. 

When  my  good  falcon  made  her  flight  across 
Thy  father's  ground. 

Shakespeare  Winter's  Tale  act  iv,  sc.  3, 1.  17. 

Across  the  brook  like  roebuck  bound. 
And  thread  the  brake  like  questing  hound. 

Scott  Lady  of  the  Luke  can.  3,  st.  13, 1.  9. 

The  musk-rat  or  the  mink  leads  a  long,  silent,  glittering  trail 
across  the  glassy  water.  Gibson  Strolls  p.  55. 

The  ball  ricochetted  completely  across  the  broad  surface  of  the 
lake  ...  in  continuous  splashes. 

Baker  Rifle  and  Hound  in  Ceylon  ch.  3,  p.  49. 

I  have  seen  the  clouds  file  as  straight  across  the  sky  toward  a 
growing  storm  ...  as  soldi»'rs  hastening  to  the  .  .  .  attack  or 
defense.  Burroughs  Locusts  and  Wild  Honey  p.  94. 

But,  at  intervals,  as  the  night-wind  swept  across  the  bastion,  it 
bore  sounds  of  fearful  portent  to  the  ear. 

F.  Parkman  Conspiracy  of  Poniiac  vol.  i,  ch.  10,  p.  222. 

2.  On  or  from  the  other  side  of;  over;  beyond;  as,  the  house 
is  just  across  the  street;  we  heard  the  chimes  across  the  river. 


across  PREPOSITIONS  26 

Ring  out  the  old,  ring  in  the  new, 
Ring,  happy  bells,  across  the  snow. 

Tennyson  In  Memoriam  pt.  cvi,  st.  2. 
Yes,  sweet  it  seems  across  some  watery  dell 
To  catch  the  music  of  the  pealing  bell. 

Heber  Europe  st.  1. 

I  throw  a  kiss  across  the  sea, 

I  drink  the  winds  as  drinking  wine, 
And  dream  they  all  are  blown  from  thee, 

I  catch  the  whisper'd  kiss  of  thine. 

Joaquin  Miller  England,    1871.    Introduction. 

II,  Figuratively,  passing  orer,  as  a  movement  or  expression; 
over;  as,  a  shadow  comes  across  me;  an  expression  of  doubt  flitted 
across  his  face. 

All  its  associations  and  traditions  swept  at  once  across  his 
memory.  G.  O.  Trsvelyan  Life  and  Lett,  of  Lord  Macaulay  vol. 
ii,  ch.  7,  p.  22. 

Across  the  monarch's  brow  there  came 
A  cloud  of  ire,  remorse,  and  shame. 

Scott  Marmio7i  can.  5,  st.  15. 

Verbs  and  Othec  Antecedents 
Verbs  and  nouns  denoting  or  implying  motion,  as  walk^  run^ 
march,  look,  reach,  flit,  pass,  passage,  flight,  glance,  etc.,  are 
commonly  followed  by  across. 

Distinctions 
Across — along — over  —  through:  Across  signifies  so  as  to 
cross,  and  indicates  a  direction  at  right  angles  to  that  denoted  by 
along.  We  go  along  the  river's  bank  ;  we  sail,  row,  or  swim 
across  the  river.  Yet  we  speak  of  going  across  a  bridge  when  we 
really  go  along  it,  i,  e.,  in  the  direction  of  its  length.  This  is  by 
transference  of  the  idea  of  crossing  the  river  to  the  traversing  of 
the  bridge  by  which  the  river  is  crossed.  Along  is  used,  though 
less  frequently,  in  this  connection : 

Along  the  bridge  Lord  Marmion  rode. 
Proudly  his  red-roan  charger  trod. 

Scott  Marmion  can.  1,  st.  5. 


^7  Defined  and  Illustrated  adowu 

Over  is  not  confined  to  any  specific  direction ;  a  man  may  ride 
over  a  field  to  and  fro  and  in  all  directions,  as  in  searching  for 
something.  If  he  rides  across  the  field,  it  is  from  one  side  of  the 
field  to  the  other.  One  goes  through  something  from  outside  to 
outside.  To  go  through  a  wood  is  to  start  in  from  open  ground 
on  one  side  and  to  come  out  upon  open  ground  on  the  other 
side.  Only  a  bird,  a  cloud,  a  wind,  or  the  like  could  go  across  or 
over  the  wood.  A  person  is  said  to  pass  through  an  enclosure, 
as  a  room  or  a  garden,  when  he  passes  from  outside  to  outside  of 
it;  he  may  go  across  by  passing  from  side  to  side  within  its  bounds. 
One  is  said  to  walk  over  a  stretch  of  turf  or  gravel,  which  is  under 
his  feet,  but  through  a  field  of  growing  grain  which  he  penetrates 
and  separates  as  he  passes. 

ADOWN 

See  DOWN. 

AFTER 

After  is  derived  from  the  Anglo-Saxon  oifter,  behind,  or  fur- 
ther off,  from  a/,  off,  plus  the  comparative  suffix  -ter, 

I,  Of  place,  in  the  rear  of ;  farther  back  than ;  following ; 
behind :  often  implying  a  tendency  to  press  toward ;  as,  to  follow 
after  the  troops. 

And  Abigail  hasted  .  .  .  with  five  damsels  of  hers  that  went 
after  her.  1  Sam.  xxvi,  42. 

And  the  king  went  forth  and  all  the  people  after  him. 

^  Sam,  XV,  IT. 

York.   Let  us  pursue  them  ere  the  writs  go  forth  :  — 

What  says  Lord  Warwick  ?  Shall  we  after  them  ? 
War.   After  them  !  nay,  before  them  if  we  can. 

Shakespeare  ^  K.  Henry  VI.  act.  v,  sc.  3, 1.  27. 

!!•  Of  time :  following ;  succeeding. 

1.  Subsequently  to ;  at  a  later  period  than:  used  of  time  fol- 
lowing a  specified  period  or  event,  whether  such  period  or  event 


alter 


Prepositions  28 


be  past,  present,  or  future ;  as,  after  his  death  the  property  was 
divided;  after  this  there  can  be  no  hesitation;  wheat  will  be  cheap 
after  harvest. 

It  is  easy  enough,  after  the  ramparts  are  carried,  to  find  men 
to  plant  the  flag  on  the  highest  tower. 

Macaulay  Essays,  Mackintoshes  History  p.  297. 

After  a  few  graceful  wheels  and  curvets,  we  take  our  ground. 
Thackeray  Roundabout  Papers,  Ogres  p.  203. 

After  the  Restoration  there  was  a  country  party  and  a  court 
party,  and  to  these  the  names  of  Whig  and  Tory  were  applied  in 
1679,  in  the  heat  of  the  struggle  which  preceded  the  meeting  of 
the  first  short  parliament  of  Charles  II. 

Encyc.  Brit.  9th  ed.,  vol.  xxiv,  p.  540. 

A  gi*eat  many  men  cannot  conceive  of  a  personal  continuance 
after  the  bodily  functions  are  exhausted. 

J.  Weiss  Immortal  Life  ch.  1,  p.  4. 

Electricity  has  rendered  [the  exposition]  viewable  after  dark. 
Julian  Ralph  in  Harper's  Monthly  Jan.,  1892,  p.  207. 

It  was  not  until  after  the  Revolution  .  .  .  that  the  censorship 
of  the  press  was  given  up  by  the  law  of  England. 

G.  P.  Fisher  Reformation  ch.  15,  p.  529. 

[Note. — After  in  this  sense  is  used  to  govern  an  entire  clause, 
as  a  preposition  often  does  in  Greek,  and  in  such  use  has  been  by 
some  classed  as  a  conjunction  :  formerly  in  such  use  often  fol- 
lowed by  that,  after  that 

But  after  I  am  risen  again,  I  will  go  before  you  into  Galilee. 

Matt,  xxvi,  32. 

Now  after  that  John  was  put  in  prison,  Jesus  came  into 
Galilee.  Mark  i,  14.] 

2.  In  succession  to  ;  following  successively  or  repeatedly : 
used  of  events  that  follow  in  some  definite  order,  alternation,  or 
series ;  as,  time  after  time,  day  after  day. 

After  the  dance  was  concluded,  the  whole  party  was  enter- 
tained with  brawn  and  beef,  and  stout  home-brewed. 

Irving  Sketch  Book,  Christmas  Day  p.  270. 


29  Defined  and  Illustrated  alter 

He  passed  week  aftei^  week  in  clambering  the  mountains. 

Johnson  Rasselas  ch.  5,  p.  27. 

It  was  the  custom,  too,  of  these  devout  vagabonds,  after  leav- 
ing the  chapel,  to  have  a  grand  carouse. 

Irving  Astoria  ch.  13,  p.  126. 

After  night  day  comes,  and  after  turmoil  peace. 

Edwin  Arnold  Light  of  Asia  bk.  v,  st.  8. 

3.  Subsequently  to  and  because  of ;  because  of  ;  as  the  result 
of ;  as,  after  this  explanation,  one  can  not  help  understanding. 

Dawson,  after  his  announcement  of  the  animal  nature  of  the 
Eozoon,  suggested  the  name  Eozoic.     Dana  Geology  pt.  iii,  p.  148. 

After  he  had  received  the  honor  of  knighthood  from  his  sov- 
ereign, he  assumed  the  heraldic  device  of  three  wiverns.  Agnes 
Strickland  Queens  of  Eng.,  Elizabeth  in  vol.  iii,  ch.  8,  p.  328. 

4,  Subsequently  to,  and  in  spite  of  ;  in  spite  of ;  notwithstand- 
ing ;  as,  after  the  best  endeavors,  one  may  fail ;  after  all  conces- 
sions, reconciliation  proved  impossible:  hence  the  phrase  after 
all,  equivalent  to  when  everything  has  been  done,  considered,  or 
tlie  like  ;  as,  they  failed  after  all. 

For,  after  all,  the  object  of  religion  is  conversion,  and  to  change 
people's  behaviour. 

Matthew  Arnold  La^t  Essays,  Bishop  Butler  p.  92. 

III.  In  derived  or  metaphorical  use  : 

1 .  Behind  or  below  in  place  or  rank  ;  inferior  to. 

What  can  the  man  do  that  cometh  after  the  king  ?    Eccl.  ii,  12. 

*  I  am  content,*  he  answered,  'to  be  loved  a  little  after  Enoch.* 

Tennyson  Enoch  Arden  st.  29,  1.  425. 

2,  Pressing  or  tending  toward ;  in  search  or  pursuit  of ;  in 
quest  of ;  seeking  or  striving  for ;  for  :  an  extension  of  the  idea  of 
following  in  place  ;  as,  to  strive  after  wisdom. 

[As  after  with  verbs  of  movement  intimates  in  general  the 
tendency  of  pressing  to  an  object,  it  is  associated  with  notions  of 
an  activity,  substantives,  etc.,  in  connection  with  objects  towards 


after 


Prepositions  30 


^vhich  a  striving  or  desire  is  directed.     In  this  manner  it  stands 
with  such  notions  as  seek,  search,  ask,  call,  listen,  hunt,  endeavor, 
gape,  hunger,  thirst,  and  others,  so  that  after  frequently  coin 
cides  in  effect  with  for»    Maetzner  English  Grammar  vol.  ii,  p. 
446.] 

One  thing  have  I  desired  of  the  Lord,  that  will  I  seek  after. 

Ps.  xxvii,  4. 

As  the  hart  panteth  after  the  water  brooks.  Ps.  xlii,  1. 

My  servant,  Travers,  whom  I  sent 
On  Tuesday  last,  to  listen  after  news. 

Shakespeare  ^  K.  Henry  IV.  act  i,  sc.  1, 1.  77. 

The  petty  pesterers,  with  card  and  stamp. 
Who  hunt  for  autographs,  were  after  me. 

Holland  Kathrina,  Labor  pt.  iii,  st.  60. 

No  man  can  fitly  seek  after  truth  who  does  not  hold  truth  in 
the  deepest  reverence.  Bushnell  Sermons  sermon  ix,  p.  180. 

St.  Paul  .  .  .  showed  them  that  they  were  feeling  after  God, 
but  blindly,  ignorantly,  wrongly. 

Robertson  Sermons  fourth  series,  ser.  xxiv,  p.  802. 

3,  According  to  the  nature,  wishes,  or  customs  of ;  in  accord- 
ance with  ;  in  conformity  to  ;  according  to  ;  in  proportion  to  ;  as, 
you  are  a  man  after  my  own  heart. 

Ahithophel  hath  spoken  after  this  manner :  shall  we  do  after 
his  saying?  2  Sam.  xvii,  6. 

Their  clothes  are  after  such  a  pagan  cut  too. 
That,  sure,  they've  worn  out  Christendom. 

Shakespeare  K.  Henry  VIII.  act  i,  sc.  3,  1.  14. 

The  floors  are  sometimes  of  wood,  tessellated  after  the  fashion 
of  France.  Macaulay  Eng.  vol.  i,  ch.  3,  p.  275. 

The  Church  Government  is  severely  Presbyterian,  after  the 
discipline  of  Calvin.  Evelyn  Diary,  Mar.  23,  1646. 

It  is  easy  in  the  world  to  live  after  the  world's  opinion. 

Emerson  Essays,  Self-Reliance  in  first  series,  p.  49. 

4.  In  imitation  of ;  in  the  manner  of  ;  in  obedience  to ;  in  con- 
formity to  ;  as,  a  picture  after  Titian. 

And  God  said,  Let  us  make  man  after  our  likeness.     Gen.  i.  26. 


31  Defined  and  Illustrated  after 

In  answer  to  Philip's  desii  e  to  behold  a  theophany  after  the 
manner  of  the  Old  Testament,  Jesus  said,  *  He  that  hath  seen  Me 
hath  seen  the  Father.' 

J.  P.  Thompson  Theology  of  Christ  ch.  11,  p.  147. 

At  least  we  might  have  a  betrothment  after  the  royal  fashion. 
Mary  R.  Mitford  Our  Village,  Outing  Sept.  26, 1824. 

5.  For  the  sake  of ;  in  remembrance  or  observance  of ;  by 
the  name  of ;  as,  the  boy  was  named  after  Lincoln. 

Our  eldest  son  was  named  George  after  his  uncle. 

Goldsmith  Vicar  of  Wakefield  ch.  1,  p.  36. 

6.  In  relation  to ;  about ;  concerning ;  as,  to  look  after  my 
affairs  ;  to  inquire  after  one's  health. 

Take  heed  to  thyself  .  .  .  that  thou  inquire  not  after  their 
gods.  Deut,  xii,  30. 

Verbs  and  Other  Antecedents 

[As  after  with  verbs  of  movement  intimates  in  general  the 
tendency  of  pressing  to  an  object,  it  is  associated  with  notions  of 
an  activity,  substantives,  etc. ,  in  connection  with  objects  towards 
which  a  striving  or  desire  is  directed.  In  this  manner  it  stands 
with  such  notions  as  seek,  search,  ask,  call,  listen,  hunt,  endeavor, 
gape,  hunger,  thirst,  and  others,  so  that  after  frequently  coincides 
in  effect  with  for,        Maetzner  English  Grammar  vol.  ii,  p.  445.] 

Distinctions 
After — behind : 

[In  a  local  meaning,  after,  in  partial  distinction  from  behind, 
is  not  so  much  used  of  the  quiet  abiding  in  the  rear  of  an  object  as 
to  suppose  a  progressive  or  striving  movement  in  which  although 
not  absolutely  there  lies  the  tendency  to  press  on  to  an  object,  and 
which  is  rarely  conceived  in  its  result. 

Maetzner  English  Grammar  vol.  ii,  p.  445.] 

Thus,  to  follow  behind  would  be  tautological,  since  follow 
includes  the  meaning  of  behind;  but  to  follow  after  is  in  approved 
use,  since  after  adds  the  idea  of  seeking  to  overtake.  So  strong  is 
this  implication  that  it  is  felt  in  connection  even  with  the  neuter 
verb  be,  as  when  one  says,  "  I  am  after  you." 


after  PREPOSITIONS  DEFINED  AND  ILLUSTRATED  32 

After—for:  After  and /or  are  in  certain  uses  equivalent  and 
used  interchangeably.  One  may  be  said  to  be  named  after  or  for 
Lincoln  :  one  may  seek  after  fame  or  seek  for  it.  The  fact  that 
after  carries  the  sense  of  seeking,  reaching  toward,  or  caring  for 
(probably  from  the  following  or  pursuing  after  something  desired) 
disposes  of  the  objection  that  of  course  one  is  named  after  any 
one  who  lived  before  him.  After  has  other  references  than  that 
to  time,  signifying  according  to,  in  behalf  of,  etc.  In  behalf  of 
or  for  the  sake  of  one  loved  or  honored,  we  give  a  child  or  a 
place  his  name,  thus  naming  the  person  or  place  after  (in  behalf 
of)  him. 

[After— for  are  often  used  interchangeably,  especially  after 

words  expressing  desire,  striving,  search,  etc.      To  thirst  after 

truth  or  for  truth,  to  search  after,  or  for  knowledge,  hunt  after, 

or  for  riches,  strive  after,  or  for  fame,  eager  for,  or  after  position. 

Fallows  100,000  Synonyms  and  Antonyms,'] 

After — since:  After  excludes  while  since  includes  reference 
to  the  present  time.  The  statement  ^^ After  the  battle  of  Marathon 
the  Greeks  no  longer  feared  the  Persians  "  puts  the  whole  matter 
far  from  the  present.  Greeks  and  Persians  ceased  to  be  competi- 
tors centuries  ago.  But  the  statement  ^' Since  the  Reformation 
the  principles  of  religious  liberty  have  steadily  advanced  "  brings 
the  advance  up  to  to-day.  '^ After  my  departure  I  heard  nothing 
from  him  "  puts  all  expectancy  or  likelihood  of  hearing  far  into 
the  past.  It  is  so  we  should  speak  of  one  long  dead.  But  **  Since 
my  departure  I  have  heard  nothing  "  keeps  expectancy  and  possi- 
bility open  to  the  very  moment  of  utterance. 


IV — Prepositions  Defined  and  Illustrated 

AOAIIVST 

Against  is  derived  from  the  Middle  English  againest,  from 
again  plus  the  adverbial  ending  -es  plus  the  intensive  ending  -<, 
the  idea  of  being  opposite  or  opposed  underlying  all  the  meanings 
both  of  the  adverb  again  and  of  the  preposition  against. 

I,  Of  place  or  space:  in  a  direct  line  toward;  opposite  to. 

1 ,  Of  position : 

(a)  directly  opposite;  facing;  in  front  of:  often  preceded  hjover; 
as,  against  the  background  of  the  sky;  over  against  the  temple. 
Gro  into  the  village  over  against  you.  Matt,  xxi,  2. 

The  ships'  masts  standing  row  by  row 
Stark  black  against  the  stars. 

Morris  Jason  bk.  ix,  st.  18. 

High  in  the  topmost  zenith  a  central  spark, 

A  luminous  cloud  that  glow'd  against  the  dark. 

E.  C.  Stedman  Alice  of  Monmouth  div.  xx,  st.  4. 

Above,  against  the  clouds  of  twilight,  ghostly  on  the  gray 
precipice,  stand,  myriad  by  myriad,  the  shadowy  armies  of  the 
Unterwalden  pine.  Ruskin  Mod.  Paint,  vol.  v,  pt.  vi,  p.  93. 

Against  the  sheer,  precipitous  mountain-side 
Thorwaldsen  carved  his  Lion  at  Lucerne. 

Aldrich  Thorwaldsen  1.  6. 

(h)  In  contact  with  and  pressing  upon;  bearing  upon;  as,  to 
lean  against  sl  wall. 

We  fended  the  canoes  off  the  sides,  and  assisted  our  progress 
by  pushing  against  the  rocks. 

Baker  in  Bayard  Taylor's  Lake  Regions  Cent,  Afr*  ch.  24,  p.  377. 

Putting  his  feet,  now,  against  the  wall,  so  as  to  get  a  good 
purchase,  and  pushing,  .  .  .  the  trunk,  with  much  difficulty,  was 
slid  out.  PoE  Tales,  Von  Kempelen  in  first  series,  p.  107. 

8  (33) 


agralnst  PREPOSITIONS  34 

2.  Of  motion,  into  contact  or  collision  with;  so  as  to  meet, 
strike,  or  the  like;  in  movement  toward:  often  implying  force;  as, 
the  ship  was  dashed  against  the  rocks. 

And  heel  against  the  pavement  echoing,  burst 
Their  drowse. 

Tennyson  Idylls  of  the  King,  Oeraint  and  Enid  1. 271. 

The  waves  pounded  like  Titanic  sledge-hammers  against  the 
vessel's  quivering  timbers. 

Kennan  Tent  Life  in  Siberia  ch.  2,  p.  14. 

The  linden,  like  a  lover,  stands    And  taps  against  thy  window 
pane.  T.  B.  Read  Arise  st.  2. 

I  brushed  against  a  withered  old  man  tottering  down  the  street 
under  a  load  of  yarn.      J.  M.  Barrie  Auld  Licht  Idylls  ch.  4,  p.  97. 

II,  Of  time,  approximating  to  (a  specified  moment  or  event): 
in  anticipation  of;  in  preparation  for;  in  view  of;  in  time  for;  as, 
be  ready  against  the  third  day. 

[Note. — The  object  of  the  preposition  in  such  use  is  often  a 
clause  or  phrase,  which  has  sometimes  been  improperly  supposed 
to  be  a  conjunctive  use;  as,  be  ready  against  visitors  come.] 

And  they  made  ready  the  present  against  Joseph  came  at  noon: 
for  they  heard  that  they  should  eat  bread  there.         Gen.  xliii,  25. 

III.  Of  various  relations : 

1.  In  opposition  to,  as  in  character,  spirit,  or  purpose;  opposite 
or  contrary  to ;  in  hostility  to ;  not  in  conformity  with  (compare 
I.,  2);  counter  to;  as,  against  my  will;  to  set  up  your  opinion 
against  mine. 

Thine  eye  be  evil  against  thy  poor  brother,  .  •  .  and  he  cry 
unto  the  Lord  against  thee.  Deut.  xv,  9. 

Blame  is  safer  than  praise.  ...  As  long  as  all  that  is  said  is 
said  against  me,  I  feel  a  certain  assurance  of  success. 

Emerson  Essays,  Compensation  in  first  series,  p.  98. 

Eight  of  the  older  girls  came  forward,  and  preferred  against 
her  charges  —  alas,  too  well  founded  —  of  calumny  and  falsehood. 

Margaret  Fuller  Ossoli  Summer  on  the  Lakes,  Mariana 
ch.  4,  p.  89. 


35  Defined  and  Illustrated  again&t 

The  stream  of  public  opinion  now  sets  against  us ;  but  ii  is 
about  to  tiu-n,  and  the  regurgitation  will  be  tremendous. 

Whittier  Prose  WorkSy  William  Leggett  in  vol.  i,  p.  417. 

I  strove  against  the  stream  and  all  in  vain. 
Tennyson  Princess  pt.  vi,  Song,  Ask  Me  No  More  st.  3,  1.  2. 

I  hear  him  charge  his  saints  that  none  .  .  . 
Blaspheme  against  him  with  despair. 

E.  B.  Browning  De  Profundis  st.  19. 

A  fault  in  respect  to  the  settled  forms  of  words,  that  is,  an 
offense  against  the  etymology  of  a  language,  is  denominated  a 
barbarism.  Day  Art  of  Discourse  div.  ii,  pt.  i,  ch.  8,  p.  260. 

2,  In  resistance  to  for  protection ;  so  as  to  protect  or  defend 
from;  adversely  concerning;  as,  to  warn  against  a  plot. 

He  declares  to  all  nations  that  he  will  stand  by  his  political 
creed  against  the  world. 

A.  Oilman  Making  of  American  Nation  ch.  21,  p.  183. 

Energy  in  government  is  essential  to  .  .  .  security  against 
external  and  internal  dangers. 

Madison  in  The  Federalist  No.  xxxvii,  p.  163. 

The  weak,  against  the  sons  of  spoil  and  wrong, 
Banded,  and  watched  their  hamlets,  and  grew  strong. 

Bryant  The  Ages  st.  11. 

The  searching  tenderness  of  her  woman's  tones  seemed  made 
for  a  defense  against  ready  accusers. 

George  Eliot  Middlemarch  vol.  ii,  ch.  76,  p.  373. 

In  Sweden  sanitary  amulets  are  made  of  mistletoe- twigs,  and 
the  plant  is  supposed  to  be  a  specific  against  epilepsy  and  an 
antidote  for  poisons.      Fiske  Myths  and  Myth-Makers  ch.  2,  p.  61. 

So  in  human  action,  against  the  spasm  of  energy,  we  offset  the 
continuity  of  drill.  Emerson  Conduct  of  Life,  Power  p.  65. 

Thy  grave  is  shut  against  the  lies    Of  this  false  world. 

G.  H.  Boker  The  Book  of  the  Dead  pt.  vi,  st.  1. 

At  four  different  points  have  the  vast  towers  been  pushed  to 
the  walls,  filled  with  soldiers,  and  defended  against  the  fires  of 
the  besieged  by  a  casing  of  skins. 

W.  Ware  Zenobia  vol.  ii,  letter  xiv,  p.  131. 


asalnst  PREPOSITIONS  36 

His  soul  was  steeled  against  the  grosser  seductions  of  appetite. 
Prescott  Biog.  and  Crit.  MiscelL,  C  B.  Brown  p.  12. 

3.  To  the  debit  of;  as,  to  charge  items  against  a  customer. 

Bene,  Sir,  T  shall  meet  your  wit  in  the  career,  an  you  charge 
it  against  me. 

Shakespeare  Much  Ado  about  Nothing  act  v,  sc.  1, 1. 136. 

4.  Of  comparison,  as  of  objects  weighed  in  opposite  scales,  or 
placed  opposite  to  each  other  for  measurement  or  the  like,  com- 
monly metaphorical:  in  comparison  with;  contrasted  with;  as  an 
offset  to.     (Compare  I.,  1  (a).) 

But  in  that  crystal  scales  let  there  be  weighed 
Your  lady's  love  against  some  other  maid. 

Shakespeare  Romeo  and  Juliet  act.  i,  sc.  2, 1.  96. 

Weighed  against  your  lying  ledgers  must  our  manhood  kick  the 
beam?  ^  "Whittier  The  Pine-tree  st.  2. 

And  solid  pudding  against  empty  praise. 

Pope  The  Dunciad  bk.  i,  1.  54. 

5.  In  preparation  for ;  as  a  resource  for ;  so  as  to  meet  or  be 
ready  for  (compare  II.) ;  as,  money  laid  up  against  old  age ;  pro- 
vision against  famine. 

It  is  the  duty  of  parents  to  make  a  prudent  provision  for  their 
children,  and  against  the  accidents  of  life. 

Guthrie  Mari  and  the  Gospel,  Riches  p.  135. 

In  the  city  is  a  public  gi*anary,  an  admirable  resource  against 
scarcity. 

John  Adams  Defence  of  Constitutions  vol.  i,  letter  xv,  p.  47. 

Distinctions 
Against — before — by^or :  As  referring  to  time  these  words 
have  kindred  use.  For  distinctly  denotes  purpose.  "Be  ready 
for  the  third  day"  means  "be  prepared  to  meet  that  day's 
demands."  By  in  the  sam©  sentence  would  mean  "not  later 
than,"  so  that  the  third  day  shall  not  come  and  not  find  you  ready. 
"  Before  the  third  day  "  would  mean  in  advance  of  its  coming,  the 
preparation  to  be  all  completed  at  some  earlier  time.     Against 


37  Defined  and  Illustrated  along 

combines  the  senses  of  hy  and  for,  signifying  both  punctuality 
and  purpose.  Against  the  third  day  means  not  later  than  its 
coming  and  with  distinct  preparation  for  whatever  it  is  to  bring. 
Against  in  this  sense  is  now,  however,  much  less  used  than  for- 
merly, hy  being  largely  employed  in  its  place. 

[Against — from  are  often  interchangeable ;  as,  **  Shelter  from 
the  blast  or  against  the  blast."  Thus  we  may  say,  *'  Defend  us 
against,  or  from,  protect  us  against,  or  from,  secure  us  against, 
or  frorn,  our  enemies." 

Fallows  100,000  Synonyms  and  Antonyms.^ 

Against — with  :    See  under  with. 

AL.ONO 

Along  is  derived  from  the  Anglo-Saxon  andlang,  from  and-, 
against,  plus  lang  =  long,  i,  e.,  against  the  length,  in  the  direction 
of  the  length. 

I,  Of  place  or  space :  referring  to  movement,  direction,  or 
extension  in  the  line  of  the  length  of  some  object ;  through  or  over 
the  length  of  ;  at  points  distributed  through  or  over  the  length  of ; 
in  or  by  the  course  of ;  on  the  line  of ;  in  the  direction  of ;  beside ; 
by ;  near ;  as,  the  ship  sailed  along  the  coast ;  an  electric  shock 
runs  along  the  nerve ;  trees  are  planted  along  the  road. 

They  robbed  all  that  came  along  that  way  by  them. 

Judges  ix,  25. 

Along  the  crowded  path  they  bore  her  now,  pure  as  the  newly 
fallen  snow.  Dickens  Old  Curiosity  Shop  ch.  73,  p.  329. 

Along  the  road-side  the  elder-berry's  cymes  have  been  trans- 
formed to  clusters  of  shining  black  berries. 

Geo.  H.  Ellwanger  The  Garden's  Story  ch.  14,  p.  307. 

Flags  and  rushes  grow  along  its  plashy  shore, 

Hawthorne  Mosses,  The  Old  Manse  p.  15. 

Along  the  forest-glade    The  wHd  deer  trip. 

Thomson  Seasons,  Summer  1.  59. 

Then  a  cold  and  deathlike  stupor  slowly  crept  along  my  frame. 

T.  B.  Read  Christine  st.  9. 


along  Prepositions  38 

I  cautiously  coasted  along  shore,  which  was  full  of  snags  and 
sawyers.  Alex.  Wilson  in  Ord's  Life  of  Wilson  in  Am,  Ornith- 
ology vol.  i,  p.  88. 

I  passed  along  the  narrow  ridge  of  a  reef  .  .  .  while  a  swash 
of  some  depth  lay  close  within. 

W.  Elliott  Carolina  Sports,  Bass  Fishing  p.  141. 

We  flew  away  with  bellying  sail  along  the  coast  of  Maheta. 
Stanley  Through  the  Dark  Continent  vol.  i,  ch.  8,  p.  168. 

II.  Of  time,  considered  as  having  extension  in  length  : 
During  the  course  or  lapse  of ;  during ;  through ;  throughout ; 
as,  along  the  track  of  centuries. 

The  love  that  leads  the  willing  spheres 
Along  the  unending  track  of  years. 

Bryant  Song  of  the  Sower  st.  10. 

Sprinkled  along  the  waste  of  years. 

Keble  Christian  Year,  Advent  Sunday  st.  8, 1.  3. 

While  we  glide  along  the  stream  of  time. 

Johnson  Easselas  ch.  34,  p.  183. 

Distinctions 

Along — beside — by :  Along  has  always  the  suggestion  of  extent 
or  motion  in  the  direction  of  the  length.  Beside  and  by  with 
verbs  of  motion  may  convey  the  same  idea.  We  may  say  "We 
walked  by  the  river,"  or  **  We  walked  beside  the  river,"  or  *' We 
walked  along  the  river's  bank."  In  the  last  sentence  it  is  necessary 
to  use  the  word  "bank"  or  other  limiting  term,  because  along 
might  apply  to  the  stream  itself,  as  a  light  might  be  said  to  flash 
along  the  river;  beside  and  by  need  no  such  limitation,  because  it 
is  contained  in  the  very  meaning  of  the  words. 

On  the  other  hand,  we  may  speak  of  a  man  as  living  beside  the 
river  or  by  the  river,  with  reference  to  a  fixed  location;  to  live 
alo7ig  the  river  would  suggest  a  wandering  life.  A  house  may 
stand  beside  or  by,  but  not  along,  the  river  ;  the  boat  plies  along 
the  river. 


39  Defined  and  Illustrated  amid 

AmiD 

Amid  is  derived  from  the  Anglo-Saxon  on-middany  composed 
of  on,  on,  plus  middariy  middle,  i,  e.,  on  or  in  the  middle,  in  the 
midst.  The  variant  form  amidst  does  not  differ  materially  in 
meaning  or  use. 

[The  recent  tendency  seems  to  be  to  distinguish  amidst  from 
amid  by  using  it  especially  of  scattered  things  or  of  something 
moving  in  the  midst  of  other  things.  Standard  Dictionary.'] 

Amid  and  amidst  are  often  abbreviated,  especially  in  poetry, 
to  mid  and  midst.  Amidst  is  more  common  in  ordinary  speech 
than  amid, 

I.  Of  place  or  space : 

Surrounded  or  encompassed  by  ;  in  the  midst  of ;  mingled 
with  ;  among ;  not  limited  to  the  exact  center. 

All  amid  them  stood  the  tree  of  life. 

Milton  Paradise  Lost  bk.  iv,  I.  218. 

The  villages  peeped  out  amid  the  woodlands,  the  church  bells 
were  sounding  pleasantly  across  the  meadows. 

H.  S.  Cunningham  The  Heriots  ch.  34,  p.  237. 

He  arose, 
Ethereal,  flush'd,  and  like  a  throbbing  star 
Seen  ^mid  the  sapphu-e  heaven's  deep  repose. 

Keats  Eve  of  St.  Agnes  st.  36. 

Amid  the  throng  in  Elizabeth's  antechamber  the  noblest  form 
is  that  of  the  singer  who  lays  the  '  Faerie  Queen'  at  her  feet. 

Green  Short  Hist.  Eng.  People  ch.  7,  §  7,  p.  423. 

Amid  its  fair  broad  lands  the  abbey  lay. 

Bryant  The  Ages  st.  20. 

The  young  imagination  delights  to  dwell  amid  the  bosky  recesses 
of  this  little  spot. 

Hugh  Miller  Scenes  and  Legends  of  Scotland  ch.  9,  p.  123. 

As  he  advanced  he  was  soon  lost  amidst  the  bayous  and  marshes 
which  are  found  along  the  Red  River  and  its  tributaries. 

Bancroft  United  States  vol.  i,  ch.  2,  p.  49. 


amid  Prepositions  40 

II.  Of  circumstances,  acts,  conditions,  etc. : 

Existing  or  acting  in  the  midst  of  ;  affected  by  :  often  adding 
the  implication  of  opposition  or  resistance ;  as,  comfort  amid  life's 
sorrows  ;  he  stood  firm  amid  temptations. 

Agricultural  life  appears  to  have  been  his  beau  ideal  of  exist- 
ence, which  haunted  his  thoughts  even  amid  the  stern  duties  of 
the  field.  Irving  Washington  vol.  i,  ch.  26,  p.  284. 

Yet,  amid  vacillation,  selfishness,  weakness,  treachery,   one 

great  man  was  like  a  tower  of  trust ;  this  was  Gaspar  de  Coligny. 

F.  Parkman  Pioneers  of  France  pt.  i,  ch.  2,  p.  18. 

Amidst  the  thickest  carnage  blazed  the  helmet  of  Navarre. 

Macaulay  Battle  of  Ivry  st.  4. 

See,  Sidney  bleeds  amid  the  martial  strife. 

Pope  Essay  on  Man  ep.  4,  1.  101. 

Half  drowned  amid  the  breakers'  roar. 

Scott  Marmion  can.  ii,  st.  11. 

Distinctions 
Amid — amidst — among — in  the  midst  of :  Following  the  ety- 
mology, amid  denotes  simply  position,  where  one  object  (in  the 
middle  or  midst)  is  surrounded  bj  others,  while  among  denotes 
a  mingling,  so  that  one  object  is  intermingled  (literally  or  figura- 
tively) with  others.  That  which  is  amid  is  thought  of  as  separate 
from  the  things  that  surround  it.  This  idea  of  separation  or 
distinction  may  reach  even  to  a  latent  implication  of  hostility. 
Thus  we  never  say  '^amid  friends,"  but  we  may  say  ''amid 
enemies."  Among  always  implies  some  direct  relation,  as  of 
companionship,  union,  similarity,  or  perhaps  even  of  active  hos- 
tility. So  one  says  "  I  found  myself  among  friends,"  or,  conversely, 
"I  found  myself  among  enemies"  (i.  e.,  enemies  to  be  met  and 
dealt  with  directly,  and  not  merely  surrounding  as  would  be 
denoted  by  amid).  So  we  say  '*one  instance  among  many"  (i.  e., 
many  of  the  same  kind).  We  may  say  *'The  nest  was  hidden 
amid  (or  among)  the  leaves";  in  using  amid  we  think  only  of  the 


41  Defined  and  Illustrated  amid 

position  of  the  nest  in  relation  to  the  leaves  that  are  all  around  it; 
in  using  among  we  think  of  the  leaves  as  factors  that  shut  in  and 
conceal  the  nest. 

[Amid  (a  poetical  form)  and  amidst ,  denote  in  the  midst  or  the 
middle  of,  or  surrounded  by;  as,  "A  tree  amidst  the  garden." 
*'A  task  performed  amidst  many  interruptions.''  Among  or 
amongst f  as  its  etymology  implies,  denotes  an  intermixture  or  a 
mingling.  It  implies  a  collection  of  objects  with  which  something 
is  intermixed  or  mingled;  as,  "He  was  among  his  friends." 
"  Pamphlets  were  found  among  the  books."  We  may  say  among 
the  schoolmen;  among  the  philosophers,  among  the  Americans, 
among  the  Orientals,  among  the  ideas  advanced,  among  the  argu- 
ments used.  In  none  of  these  cases  could  amid,  or  amidst,  be 
used.  So  we  may  say  amidst  temptations,  amidst  sufferings, 
amidst  difficulties,  amidst  the  waves.  Among,  or  amongst,  could 
not  be  used  in  these  cases.  .  .  . 

Milton  says  of  the  seraph  Abdiel : 

"  Faithful  found 
Among  the  faithless,  faithful  only  he," 

because  he  had  been  one  of  the  number  of  the  rebellious  host 
before  they  had  fallen,  and  was  yet  intermingled  with  them.  But 
when  he  determined  to  leave  them,  Milton  discriminatingly  adds — 

**From  amidst  them  forth  he  passed." 

Fallows  100,000  Synonyms.] 

The  distinction  is  also  finely  observed  in  the  following  sentence: 

Amid  the  crowd  and  crush  of  life,  each  soul  is  in  personal 
solitude  with  God.  Martineau  Studies  of  Christianity,  Christ. 
Without  Priest  p,  58. 

The  "crowd"  is  around  without  communion  or  sympathy; 
hence  the  soul  is  said  to  be  "  amid  the  crowd." 

When  the  poet  would  picture  the  feeble  old  minstrel,  depressed 
and  confused,  he  writes: 

Amid  the  strings  his  fingers  strayed 
And  an  uncertain  warbling  made. 

Scott  Lay  of  the  Last  Minstrel  int.  st.  5,  L 1* 


amid  Prepositions  42 

The  minstrers  hand  for  the  time  was  a  stranger  to  the  strings 
of  his  almost  disused  harp.    On  the  other  hand,  the  Scripture  says  : 

Among  them  that  are  born  of  women  there  hath  not  risen  a 
greater  than  John  the  Baptist.  Matt,  xi,  11. 

Here  is  indicated  the  prophet's  full  human  participation  and 
fellowship  with  the  race  to  whom  he  ministered ;  he  was  one 
among  them.    Similarly  we  read  : 

All  Israel  ...  as  well  the  stranger  as  he  that  was  born  among 
them.  Josh,  viii,  33. 

In  neither  of  the  last  two  instances  would  it  be  possible  to  say 
amid.  The  prepositional  phrase  in  the  midst  of  is  not  subject  to 
the  limitations  of  amidj  but  may  denote  participation,  compan- 
ionship, or  fellowship.  Thus  one  may  be  in  the  midst  of  friends, 
of  engagements,  or  of  pleasures.  But,  on  the  other  hand,  the 
Scripture  says : 

Take  me  not  away  in  the  midst  of  my  years.  Ps.  cii,  24. 

Here  the  reference  is  simply  to  the  middle  point  of  time.  Thus 
the  phrase  in  the  midst  of  seems  to  sweep  the  whole  range  of 
thought  from  amid  to  among. 

Errors 

In  our  (their)  midst :  These  expressions  hold  their  own  with 
singular  obstinacy,  considering  that  they  are  without  recognized 
authority  of  any  kind.  They  are  used  chiefly  in  connection  with 
religious  matters,  and  yet  the  Scripture  carefully  avoids  such 
phrases,  using  instead  the  preposition  of  with  the  objective  fol- 
lowing. 

"Where  two  or  three  are  gathered  together  in  my  name,  there 
am  I  in  the  midst  of  them.  Matt,  xviii,  20. 


OF  . 

43  ^ — ''^     Defined  and  Illustrated  amons 

AinONG,  AHOIVOST 

Among  is  derived  from  the  Anglo-Saxon  omnang^  from  on,  in, 
plus  mang,  for  mange,  dative  of  {ge)mang,  a  mingling,  crowd, 
literally  in  the  mingling^  in  the  crowds 

I.  Of  place  or  space : 

Mingled  with  ;  having  position  or  movement  in  the  midst  of ; 
included  within  a  mass  or  multitude  of  objects ;  in  or  into  the 
midst  of ;  surrounded  by ;  as,  among  the  crowd ;  to  fall  among 
thieves. 

Among  these  fountains  .  .  .  the  melon-seller  erects  his  booth, 
swashing  his  boards  constantly  with  water. 

W.  W.  Story  Rdba  di  Roma  vol.  ii,  ch.  17,  p.  481. 

And,  fairest  of  all  streams,  the  Murga  roves 
Among  Merou's  bright  palaces  and  groves. 

Moore  Lalla  Rookli,  Veiled  Prophet  pt.  i,  st.  1. 

Among  all  the  buildings,  the  most  noble  objects  were  the  stee- 
ples built  upon  the  churches.  John  Adams  Works,  Defence  of 
the  Constitution  in  vol.  v,  ch.  6,  p.  299. 

It  was  sometimes  ticklish  steering  among  the  rafts  and  arks 
with  which  the  river  was  thronged. 

N.  P.  Willis  Rural  Letters,  Under  a  Bridge  letter  xv,  p.  133. 

Flow  gently,  sweet  Afton,  among  thy  green  braes. 
Flow  gently,  I'll  sing  thee  a  song  in  thy  praise. 

Burns  Flow  Gently,  Sweet  Afton  st.  1, 1. 1, 

From  peak  to  peak,  the  rattling  crags  among, 
Leaps  the  live  thunder  I 

Byron  Childe  Harold  can.  3,  st.  92. 

II.  Of  various  relations : 

1.  In  the  class  or  group  of  or  with ;  in  the  number  or  com- 
pany of ;  as,  one  example  among  many. 

Nature  does  require 
Her  times  of  preservation,  which,  perforce, 
I,  her  frail  son,  amongst  my  brethren  mortal 
Must  give  my  tendance  to. 

Shakespeare  K.  Henry  VHI,  act  iii,  so.  2, 1. 145. 


among  PREPOSITIONS  44 


Our  British  soil  is  over  rank,  and  breeds 

Among  the  noblest  flowers  a  thousand  pois'nous  weeds. 

Swift  Ode  to  Dr.  William  Sancroft  st.  5. 

"^  Few  of  us  ever  discover  bigots  among  those  who  agree  with  us. 
Martyn  Wendell  Phillips  bk.  iii,  ch.  4,  p.  388. 

We  firmly  believe  History  will  rank  Mr.  Lincoln  among  the 
most  prudent  of  statesmen  and  the  most  successful  of  rulers. 

Lowell  Political  Essays,  Abraham  Lincoln  p.  184. 

2.  In  association  with  (a  number  of  persons  or  objects) ;  having 
relation  to  ;  connected  with ;  as,  some  truth  may  be  found  among 
many  errors. 

What  news  among  the  merchants? 
Shakespeare  Merchant  of  Venice  act  iii,  sc.  1, 1.  24. 

W  Whether  it  is  pdssible  to  think  without  the  aid  of  language,  is 
a  question  which  has  been  a  constant  source  of  dispute  amongst 
logicians  and  psychologists. 

T.  Fowler  Elements  of  Deductive  Logic  int.,  ch.  3,  p.  7. 

Among  the  wakeful  and  normal  states  of  the  soul,  reverie  is 
the  purest  and  the  most  perfect  instance  of  phantasye 

Porter  Human  Intellect  pt.  ii,  ch.  5,  p.  325. 

^      His  face  wore  that  bland  liveliness  .  .  .  which  marks  the  com- 
panion popular  alike  amongst  men  and  women. 

George  Eliot  Romola  bk.  i,  ch.  8,  p.  85. 

V  Among  unmitigated  rogues  mutual  trust  is  impossible. 

Spencer  Essays,  State-Tamperings  in  vol.  iii,  p.  326. 

There  is,  it  seems  to  me,  a  terrible  want  of  esprit  de  corps 
among  women. 

Frances  P.  Cobbe  Duties  of  Women  lect.  v,  p.  156. 

The  small  Italian  hound  of  exquisite  symmetry,  was  a  parlor 
favorite  and  pet  among  the  fashionable  dames  of  ancient  times. 

Irving  Sketch-Book,  Royal  Poet  p.  111. 

3,  With  the  notion  of  division  or  distribution,  affecting  all  of ; 
so  as  to  be  shared  by  ;  as,  the  money  was  divided  among  the  poor 
of  the  town. 


I 


45  Defined  and  Illustrated  among 

There  is  a  lad  here,  which  hath  five  barley  loaves,  and  two 
small  fishes  :  but  what  are  they  among  so  many?  John  vi,  9. 

«^The  country  was  portioned  among  the  captains  of  the  invaders. 

Macaulay  England  vol,  i,  p.  34. 

4*  In  the  country  or  time  of ;  according  to  the  customs  of ; 
as,  religious  observances  among  the  Greeks ;  the  usage  among 
educated  people. 

Among  the  Anglo-Saxons  the  free  population  was  divided  into 
eorl  and  ceorl,  the  men  of  noble  and  of  ignoble  descent. 

LiNGARD  England  vol.  i,  ch.  7,  app.  1,  p.  287. 

The  most  solid  walls  and  impregnable  fortresses  were  said, 
among  the  ancients,  to  be  the  work  of  the  Cyclops,  to  render  them 
the  more  respectable.  Lempriere  Class.  Diet. 

Nothing  is  more  certain  than  the  essential  identity  among  all 
ancient  nations  of  the  professions — religion,  law,  and  medicine, 
which  the  progress  of  civilization  has  separated  into  three. 

KiTTO  Daily  Bible  Illust.,  45th  Week  in  vol.  iv,  p.  195. 

^     Among  rude  nations  no  profession  is  honourable  but  that  of 
arms.  Russell  Modern  Europe  vol.  i,  letter  xxxv,  p.  213. 

Distinctions 
Amid — among :    See  under  amid. 


V — Prepositions  Defined  and  Illustrated 

AROr^D,    ROlJI¥I> 

Around  is  simply  the  word  round  with  the  addition  of  the 
prefix  a-,  having  the  general  sense  ''on,"  but  here  producing  no 
change  in  the  meaning.  There  is  little  if  any  difference,  either 
in  signification  or  usage,  between  the  two  forms  around  and 
round. 

[The  shorter  form  is  not  distinguished  in  meaning  from 
around.  Maetzner  English  Grammar  vol.  ii,  p.  326.] 

{Round  has  all  the  senses  of  ground,  and  is  hardly  distin- 
guished from  it  in  common  use,  but  lays,  if  anything,  more 
stress  on  the  strictly  circular  nature  of  the  position  or  relation, 
around  approaching  nearer  to  about.         Standard  Dictionary.!^ 

I.  Of  place  or  space  : 

1,  About  the  circuit  of  ;  on  all  sides  of  ;  on  various  sides  of ; 
so  as  to  encircle,  encompass,  or  envelop  ;  encircling  ;  surround- 
ing ;  enclosing  ;  bounding  ;  about ;  as,  to  sail  around  or  round 
the  world. 

The  determination  of  the  solar  motion  around  the  ecliptic 
may  be  considered  the  birth  of  astronomical  science. 

S.  Newcomb  Popular  Astronomy  pt.  i,  ch.  1,  p.  16. 

The  slack  sail  .  .  .  flagg'd  around  the  mast. 

Moore  Lalla  Rookh,  Fire-Worshippers  pt.  iii,  st.  9. 

And  the  wild  bee  hears  her,  around  them  humming. 
And  booms  about  them,  a  joyous  stir. 

W.  W.  Story  Spring  st.  4. 

The  convulsive  quiver  and  grip 

Of  the  muscles  around  her  bloodless  lip. 

Whittier  Mogg  Megone  pt.  i,  st.  17. 

(46) 


47  Prepositions  Defined  and  Illustrated    aslant 

Like  those  verdant  spots  that  bloom 
Around  the  crater's  burning  lips, 
Sweetening  the  very  edge  of  doom  I 
Moore  Lalla  Eookh,  Fire-Worshippers  pt.  iv,  st.  4. 

Again  my  trooping  hoimds  their  tongues  shall  loll 
Around  the  breathed  boar.      Keats  Endyinion  bk.  i,  st.  19. 

2.  Of  indefinite  extension,  in  all  or  many  directions  about 
or  from ;  as,  the  field  of  force  around  either  pole  of  a  magnet. 

The  worship  of  one's  own  will  fumes  out  around  the  being 
an  atmosphere  of  evil. 

MacDonald  Annals  of  a  Quiet  Neighbourhood  ch.  15,  p.  320. 

The  Indian  pea  .  .  .  grows  on  a  long,  villous  flower-stalk, 
around  which  both  blossoms  and  leaves  are  symmetrically  ar- 
ranged. Ludlow  Heart  of  the  Continent  ch.  2,  p.  35. 

3.  Encircling  so  as  to  avoid;  as,  to  get  aroimd  a  difficulty : 
in  conversational  rather  than  literary  use. 

4.  On  the  other  side  of  ;  to  be  reached  or  found  by  passing; 
as,  the  church  around  the  comer. 

5.  In  the  region  of;  here  and  there  in  the  parts  of;  in  various 
parts  of ;  about ;  as,  to  wander  around  the  city. 

Look  around  the  habitable  world,  how  few 
Know  their  own  good,  or  knowing  it,  pursue. 

Dryden  Juvenal  satire  x 

Glorious  indeed  is  the  world  of  God  around  us,  but  more  glo» 
rious  the  world  of  God  within  us.    Longfellow  Hyperion  p.  79. 

Distinctions 
About— around :    See  under  about. 

Aslant,  originally  an  adverb  formed  by  adding  to  slant  the 
prefix  a-,  has  long  been  used  as  a  preposition,  signifying  across 
or  over  in  a  slanting  direction  or  position ;  athwart. 

There  is  a  willow  grows  aslant  a  brook. 

Shakespeare  Hamlet  act  iv,  sc.  7,  1.  167. 


at 


Prepositions  48 


AT 

At  is  the  Anglo-Saxon  cet,  retaining  its  original  sense. 

[At  primarily  denotes  simple  occupancy  of  a  point  in  space ; 
whence  arise  numerous  derived  and  figurative  meanings,  as  of 
time,  direction,  etc. ,  by  which  the  word  partakes  of  the  meaning 
of  numerous  other  prepositions  and  prepositional  phrases. 

Standard  Dictionary.] 

[In  its  fundamental  meaning  as  to  space  it  originally  denotes 
the  proximity  to  something,  though  it  never  gives  prominence 
to  the  reference  to  the  interior  in  the  same  manner  as  in. 

Maetzner  English  Grammar  vol.  ii,  p.  374.] 

[At  is  used  to  denote  relations  of  so  many  kinds,  and  some  of 
these  so  remote  from  its  primary  local  sense,  that  a  classification 
of  its  uses  is  very  diflBlcult.      Murray  New  English  Dictionary.] 

I,  Of  place  or  space : 
1,  Denoting  position : 

(a)  Occupying  the  exact  position  of;  on;  in:  denoting  a  def- 
inite and  precise  point  of  contact ;  as,  at  the  center  of  the  circle. 

At  the  termination  of  this  bridge,  one  enters  the  Commune 
of  Jurangon.  Ellis  Summer  in  the  Pyrenees  ch.  5,  p.  108. 

(b)  In  contact  with ;  in ;  on ;  upon :  without  precise  limita- 
tion of  a  point  of  contact ;  as,  at  the  top  of  the  ladder ;  at  the 
bottom  of  the  sea. 

It  was  necessary,  of  course,  that  a  considerable  portion  of  the 
crews  should  be  at  the  ropes  in  tacking  ship. 

J.  F.  Davis  The  Chinese  vol.  ii,  ch.  11,  p.  36. 

(c)  In  proximity  to ;  in  the  vicinity  or  region  of ;  close  to ; 
by ;  near ;  as,  he  was  seated  at  table ;  the  carriage  is  at  the  door. 

Boswell  .  .  .  was  always  laying  himself  at  the  feet  of  some 
eminent  man,  and  begging  to  be  spit  upon  and  trampled  upon. 
Macaulay  Essays,  BoswelVs  Johnson  p.  141. 

At  our  feet  the  brook  took  its  rise  in  a  green  quagmire. 

W.  Besant  For  Faith  and  Freedom  ch.  24,  p.  173. 


49  Defined  and  Illustrated  at 

The  sight  of  a  soldier  at  the  poll  has  always  been  like  a  red 
rag  to  a  bull  among  all  English  people. 

N.  S.  Shaler  Kentucky  ch.  18,  p.  334. 

Lo !  all  my  soldiers  camped  npon  the  road ; 
And  all  my  city  waited  at  the  gates. 

Edwin  Arnold  Light  of  Asia  bk.  vii,  st.  22. 

At  every  turn,  with  dinning  clang, 
The  armourer's  anvil  clashed  and  rang. 

Scott  Marmion  can.  5,  st.  6. 

Thus  was  Religion  wounded  sore 
At  her  own  altars,  and  among  her  friends. 

POLLOK  Course  of  Time  bk.  ii,  1.  601. 

John  Bull  .  .  .  would  set  up  a  chop-house  at  the  very  gates 
of  paradise.  Irving  Washington  vol.  i,  ch.  6,  p.  61. 

The  Imperial  Guard  had  bivouacked  at  the  great  stone  of 
Lutzen.  J.  K.  Hosmer  Short  Hist.  German  Lit.  pt.  i,  p.  228. 

{d)  Within  the  limits  of;  in;  within;  present  in;  as,  the 
Capitol  at  Washington ;  he  is  at  the  ball  grounds. 

She  might  not  rank  with  those  detestable 
That  let  the  bantling  scald  at  home. 

Tennyson  Princess  v,  st.  16. 

With  his  [Webster's]  advent  at  Washington,  a  new  school  of 
oratory, — now  known  throughout  the  country  as  'the  Websteri- 
an,' — was  formed  ...  in  its  Demosthenian  simplicity  and 
strength.  Mathews  Oratory  and  Orators  ch.  11,  p.  324. 

He  was  educated  at  Magdalen  College,  Oxford,  and  entered 
into  public  life  at  the  age  of  twenty-eight,  being  returned  mem- 
ber of  Parliament  for  the  county  of  Dorset,  in  April,  1640. 

C.  A.  Goodrich  British  Eloquence,  Lord  Digby  p.  15. 

The  best  act  of  the  marvellous  genius  of  Greece  was  its  first 

act  ...  in  the  instinct  which  at  Thermopylae  held  Asia  at  b..y. 

Emerson  Society  and  Solitude,  Courage  p.  217. 

At  the  parish-church  I  doze  against  the  high  pew-backs  as  I 
listen  to  the  seesaw  tones  of  the  drawling  curate. 

D.  G.  Mitchell  Reveries  of  a  Bachelor,  Father-Land  p.  180. 

4 


at  ,  Prepositions  50 

The  mob  was  cantoned  at  home  among  an  overawed  and 
broken-spirited  people.  Everett  Orations,  July  4,  '26  p.  107. 

(e)  Denoting  measurement  or  interval  more  or  less  definitely 
expressed:  viewed  or  considered  from;  with  an  interval  of;  as, 
pistols  at  thirty  paces. 

Even  in  the  most  violent  storms  the  water  is  probably  calm 
at  the  depth  of  ninety  or  a  hundred  feet. 

Mary  Somerville  Connection  of  Phys.  Sciences  §  13,  p.  91. 

All  round  a  hedge  upshoots,  and  shows 
At  distance  like  a  little  wood. 
Tennyson  The  Day-Dream,  Sleeping  Palace  st.  6. 

But  alas!  the  halls  of  old  philosophy  have  been  so  long 
deserted,  that  we  circle  them  at  shy  distance  as  the  haunt  of 
phantoms  and  chimaeras. 

Coleridge  Works,  Lay  Sermon  vol.  i,  p.  445. 

ft.  Denoting  or  implying  motion  and  direction : 

(a)  In  the  direction  of;  in  reference  to;  in  pursuit  of;  in 
quest  of;  applying  to;  to;  toward;  after;  as,  to  look  at  the 
moon ;  to  shoot  at  a  mark ;  to  aim  at  the  sun ;  to  catch  at  a 
straw ;  to  strike  at  a  ball. 

Thus,  intellect  is  ever  pointing  in  derision  at  the  fogyism  of 
faith ;  and  faith  retaliates  with  scorn  at  the  irreverence  of  intel- 
lect. WiNCHELL  Set.  and  Religion  ch.  8,  p.  212. 

They  aim  at  it.     And  botch  the  words  up  fit  to  their  own 
thoughts.  Shakespeare  Hamlet  act  iv,  sc.  5. 

For  getting  a  strong  impression  that  a  skein  is  tangled,  there 
is  nothing  like  snatching  hastily  at  a  single  thiead. 

George  Eliot  Mill  on  the  Floss  ch.  8,  p.  69. 

ApoUyon  .  .  .  made  at  him,  throwing  darts  as  thick  as  hail. 
BuNYAN  Works,  Pil.  Prog.  pt.  i,  ch.  9,  p.  116. 

The  Jewish  mind,  so  far  forth  as  it  was  monotheistic,  aimed 
at  catholicity.     J.  F.  Clarke  Ten  Great  Religions  ch.  12,  p.  503. 

The  idea  of  resistance,  by  force,  was  nowhere  glanced  at  in 
the  most  distant  manner.  Wirt  Patrick  Henry  ch.  2,  p.  61. 


51  Defined  and  Illustrated  nt 

We  but  catch  at  the  skirts  of  the  thing  we  wonld  be. 

Owen  Meredith  Lucile  pt.  i,  can.  5,  st.  1. 

A  slouching  laborer  .  .  .  came  out  to  look  at  the  unusual 
scene  with  a  slow  bovine  gaze. 

George  Eliot  Adam  Bede  ch.  2,  p.  18. 

Dogs  do  always  bark  at  those  they  know  not. 

Raleigh  Hist.  World  vol.  i,  pref.,  p.  2. 

(b)  In  or  into  contact  with;  upon;  on;  against;  as,  to  knock 

at  the  door. 

He  batter'd  at  the  doors ;  none  came. 

Tennyson  Princess  v,  st.  11. 

He  knocked  at  another  door,  using  for  the  purpose  the  thick 
end  of  his  shillelagh,  with  which  he  beat  a  rousing  tattoo. 

Charlotte  Bront^  Shirley  ch.  2,  p.  10. 

(c)  By  way  of;  through,  as  in  entrance  or  exit;  as,  smoke 
came  out  at  the  windows. 

My  master.  Sir  John,  is  come  in  at  your  backdoor.  Mistress 
Ford,  and  requests  your  company. 

Shakespeare  Merry  Wives  of  Windsor  act  iii,  sc.  3. 

They  pushed  us  down  the  steps  and  through  the  court, 
And  with  grim  laughter  thrust  us  out  at  gates. 

Tennyson  Princess  iv,  st.  35. 

Tis  some  visitor  entreating  entrance  at  my  chamber  door. 

POE  The  Raven  st.  3. 

Honesty  shines  in  the  face,  but  villainy  peeps  out  at  the  eyes. 

Spurgeon  Treas.  David  vol.  i,  p.  125. 

Coachman :  As  I  was  coming  in  at  the  gate,  a  strange  gentle- 
man whisk'd  by  me.  Addison  The  Drummer  act.  v. 

II.  Of  time: 

1.  On  or  upon  the  point  or  stroke  of;  upon  the  coming  of; 
as,  the  train  will  leave  at  2  p.  m. 

Bom. :  Have  you  an  army  ready,  say  you  ? 
Vols. :  A  most  royal  one ;  the  centurions  and  their  charges  .  .  . 
to  be  on  foot  at  an  hour's  warning. 

Shakespeare  Coriolanus  act  iv,  sc.  3. 


at  Prepositions  52 

In  the  deep  nook,  where  once 
Thou  call'dst  me  np  at  midnight. 

Shakespeare  The  Tempest  act  1,  sc.  2. 

Sleep — and  af  l)reak  of  day    I  will  come  to  thee  again! 

Wordsworth  Pet  Lamb  st.  15. 

At  midnight,  in  the  forest  shades, 
Bozzaris  ranged  his  Suliote  band. 

Halleck  Marco  Bozzaris  st.  2. 

We  buried  him  darkly  at  dead  of  night, 
The  sods  with  our  bayonets  turning. 

Wolfe  Burial  of  Sir  John  Moore  st.  2. 

At  this  distance  of  time  it  is  not  easy  to  catch  him  tripping, 
and  if  we  refuse  to  be  guided  by  the  opinion  of  his  contempo- 
raries, we  almost  inevitably  fall  victims  to  his  incomparable 
plausibility.  ,  W.  Minto  Daniel  Defoe  ch.  6,  p.  85. 

Even  at  the  present  day  the  arms  of  the  craft-guild  may  often 
be  seen  blazoned  in  cathedrals. 

Green  Short  Hist.  Eng.  People  ch.  4,  §  4,  p.  218. 

2.  During  the  course  or  lapse  of;  during;  in;  by;  as,  to  lie 
awake  at  night ;  the  matter  is  at  present  uncertain. 

Men  at  some  time  are  masters  of  their  fates. 

Shakespeare  Julius  Ccesar  act  i,  sc.  2, 1.  138. 

His  listless  length  at  noontide  would  he  stretch. 

Gray  Elegy  st.  26. 

I  often  sent  small  squads  at  night  to  attack  and  run  in  the 
pickets  along  a  line  of  several  miles. 

J.  S.  MOSBY  War  Reminiscences  ch.  4,  p.  45. 

Thinking  of  the  nests  of  birds,  the  dams  of  beavers,  the  tree- 
platforms  of  apes,  it  can  scarcely  be  supposed  that  man  at  any 
time  was  unable  to  build  himself  a  shelter. 

E.  B.  Tylor  Anthropology  ch.  10,  p.  229. 

III.  Of  various  relations : 

1.  Of  occasion,  cause,  or  instrument;  on  the  happening  of; 
on  the  instant  of;  on  the  utterance  of;  in  response  to;  because 


53  Defined  and  Illustrated  at 

of;  by  means  of;  through  the  agency  of ;  on;  upon;  by;  through; 
as,  at  the  signal  the  attack  was  made;  pleased  or  angry  at 
something. 

Thousands  at  his  bidding  speed. 

Milton  Sonnet,  On  His  Blindness  1.  12. 

I  determined,  at  every  hazard,  to  lift  up  the  standard  of 
emancipation  in  the  eyes  of  the  nation,  within  sight  of  Bunker 
Hill,  and  in  the  birth-place  of  Liberty.  Garrison  in  O.  John- 
son's Wm.  Lloyd  Garrison  vol.  ii,  ch.  2,  p.  42. 

I  replied,  that  we,  having  assisted  in  the  conquest  of  Canada, 
at  a  great  expense  of  blood  and  treasure,  had  some  right  to  be 
considered  in  the  settlement  of  it. 

B.  Franklin  Autobiography  vol.  ii,  ch.  10,  p.  276. 

At  the  triumph  of  Aurelian  .  .  .  eight  hundred  pairs  of  gladia- 
tors fought.  Storrs  Divine  Origin  led.  viii,  p.  258. 

Athelwold  was  thunderstruck  at  the  proposal. 

W.  Russell  Modern  Europe  vol.  i,  letter  xvii,  p.  99. 

Every  man  alone  is  sincere.  At  the  entrance  of  a  second 
person,  hypocrisy  begins. 

Emerson  Essays,  Friendship  in  first  series,  p.  163. 

Peter  saw  the  bulk  of  his  subjects,  at  his  accession  to  the 
throne,  little  better  than  beasts  of  burden. 

J.  Morse  Universal  Geog.  vol.  ii,  p.  78. 

Common  solder,  which  is  a  mixture  of  lead  and  tin,  melts  at 
a  lower  temperature  than  either  lead  or  tin. 

Spencer  Principles  of  Biology  vol.  i,  §  92,  p.  276. 

2.  Of  degree,  rate,  value,  etc. :  up  to;  amounting  to;  to  the 
extent  of;  corresponding  to;  according  to;  at  &  dollar  a  yard; 
interest  at  6  per  cent. 

[Here  are  to  be  included  such  phrases  as  at  least,  at  most,  at 
any  rate,  etc.] 

Radiant  heat  moves  at  the  rate  of  186,000  miles  per  second. 
P.  G.  Tait  Recent  Advances  lect.  8,  p.  204. 

3.  Denoting  connection  in  a  great  variety  of  ways,  mostly 
metaphorical  applications  of  the  meanings  that  apply  to  space: 


ai 


Prepositions  54 


engaged  in;  occnpied  with;  connected  with;  dependent  on;  sub- 
ject to;  in  a  state  or  condition  of;  having  reference  to;  involving 
responsibility  for ;  with  direction  of  thought  or  intention  toward ; 
toward ;  with ;  against ;  as,  at  college ;  at  prayer ;  the  country  is 
at  war ;  the  stag  was  at  bay ;  he  was  enraged  at  the  insult ;  we 
were  at  his  mercy ;  they  were  set  at  liberty ;  to  laugh  at  a  person 
or  thing ;  to  talk  at  a  person  (who  is  not  directly  addressed) ;  the 
guilt  will  be  at  your  door. 

I  found  them  close  together. 
At  blow  and  thrust. 

Shakespeare  Othello  act  ii,  sc.  3. 

An  'twere  to  me,  I  should  be  mad  at  it. 

Shakespeare  Merchant  of  Venice  act  v,  sc.  1. 

And  Lancelot  marvell'd  at  the  wordless  man. 

Tennyson  Elaine  st.  9. 

It  is  better  to  fight  for  the  good  than  to  rail  at  the  ill. 

Tennyson  Maud  xxviii,  st.  5. 

True  religion  is,  at  its  soul,  spiritual  sympathy  with,  spiritual 
obedience  to  God. 

Phillips  Brooks  Light  of  the  World  ser.  v,  p.  77. 

My  ambition  will  keep  my  brain  at  work,  I  warrant  thee. 

Scott  Kenilworth  vol.  i,  ch.  15,  p.  242. 

Base  Envy  withers  at  another's  joy, 
And  hates  that  excellence  it  cannot  reach. 

Thomson  Seasons,  Spring  1.  284 

His  stem,  stoical  face  was  like  that  of  a  lion  at  bay. 

Motley  John  of  Barneveld  vol.  ii,  ch.  18,  p.  246. 

The  world's  a  stately  bark,  on  dang'rous  seas, 
With  pleasure  seen,  but  boarded  at  our  peril. 

Young  Niqht  Thoughts  vi,  1.  83. 

The  free  waves 
Will  not  say,  No,  to  please  a  wayward  king, 
Nor  will  the  winds  turn  traitors  at  his  beck. 

Lowell  Glance  Behind  the  Curtain  st.  4. 


55  Defined  and  Illustrated  at 

The  citizens  were  all  at  liberty  to  walk  and  gather  fruit  in 
his  gardens  and  grounds  near  the  town. 

Keightley  Greece  pt.  ii,  ch.  1,  p.  154. 

The  King's  chagrin  at  the  cautious  limitations  imposed  upon 
the  State's  special  embassy  was,  so  he  hoped,  to  be  removed  by 
full  conferences  in  the  camp. 

Motley  John  of  Barneveld  vol.  i,  ch.  4,  p.  217. 

An  Amazonian  woman,  indignant  at  the  cowardice  of  the 
magistrates,  attempted  to  interfere,  but  was  carried  away  and 
inclosed  in  Bridewell. 

Abel  Stevens  History  of  Methodism  vol.  i,  bk.  iii,  ch.  3,  p.  282. 

The  sporting  men  gave  it  away  by  betting  at  odds  that  Mr. 
Lincoln  would  never  reach  Washington. 

Chittenden  Recollections  of  Lincoln  ch.  10,  p.  60. 

Distinctions 

At — in:  ''He  is  now  living  at  Paris."  Correct  usage  re- 
quires us  to  say  rather,  "  He  is  now  living  in  Paris."  Always  in 
a  country ;  either  at  or  in  a  city,  town,  or  village ;  at,  if  the  place 
is  regarded  as  a  point;  in,  if  it  is  inclusive.  "We  arrived  at 
Paris";  "He  lives  in  London";  "There  are  three  churches  m 
this  village."  In  England  the  use  oiin  before  towns  and  cities 
is  more  restricted  than  in  the  United  States;  the  distinctions 
observed  there  between  at  and  in  often  seem  arbitrary. 

{At  is  less  definite  than  in.  At  the  church  may  mean  in,  or 
7iear  the  church.  Hence,  at  does  not  make  a  reference  to  the 
interior  prominent.  It  is  proper  to  use  at  before  the  names  of 
small  towns,  villages,  foreign  cities  far  remote,  and  houses;  as, 
"He  lived  at  Fishkill,  lectured  at  Winnebago,  died  at  Pekin." 

In  should  be  used  before  the  names  of  the  great  geographical 
or  political  divisions  of  the  globe,  countries,  and  large  cities;  as, 
He  teaches  in  Paris ;  she  sings  in  New  York.  At  should  be  used 
before  the  number  of  a  street,  and  in  (not  on)  before  the  name 
of  the  street ;  as,  The  officer  was  found  at  the  Court  House  in 
Clark  street. 


at  Prepositions  56 

At  or  in  may  often  be  used  interchangeably;  as,  He  was 
crowned  in,  or  at  Paris;  Both  at  Belfast  and  in  Dublin  riots 
occurred. 

At  is  used  after  the  verb  touch  ;  as,  The  vessel  touched  at 
Queenstown.  At  or  in  may  be  used  after  the  verb  arrive  ;  as, 
They  arrived  at,  or  in  Liverpool.  At  or  in  may  be  used  after 
the  verb  to  be;  as,  He  has  been  at  Boston, — in  Baltimore. 

Fallows  100,000  Synonyms  and  Antonyms.] 

At  last — at  length:  These  two  prepositional  phrases  are 
quite  distinct  in  meaning  and  are  not,  in  strict  usage,  inter- 
changeable. The  assumption  that  at  length  means  the  same  as 
at  last,  and  is  therefore  superfluous,  is  an  error.  Both  at  length 
and  at  last  presuppose  long  waiting;  but  at  last  views  what 
comes  after  the  waiting  as  a  finality ;  at  length  views  it  as  inter- 
mediate with  reference  to  action  or  state  that  continues,  or  to 
results  that  are  yet  to  follow;  as,  ** I  have  invited  him  often,  and 
at  length  he  is  coming";  *'I  have  invited  him  often,  and  at  last 
he  has  come";  ''At  length  he  began  to  recover";  ''At  last  he 
died."  "At  last  he  concluded"  is  correct,  but  "At  last  he  be- 
gan "  would  seem  somewhat  grotesque. 

Scarce  thus  at  length  failed  speech  recovered  sad. 

Milton  Paradise  Lost  bk.  iv,  1.  357. 

O,  then,  at  last  relent. 

Milton  Paradise  Lost  bk.  iv,  1.  79. 

At  length  the  freshening  western  blast 
Aside  the  shroud  of  battle  cast. 

Scott  Marmion  can.  6,  st.  36. 

There  at  last  it  lay,  the  bourn  of  my  long  and  weary  pilgringL- 
age.  R.  F.  Burton  El  Medinah  ch.  25,  p.  389. 

All  work  must  be  done  at  last,  not  in  a  disorderly,  scram- 
bling, doggish  way,  but  in  an  ordered,  soldierly,  human  way. 

RusKiN  Crown  of  Wild  Olive  lect.  i,  p.  26. 

Every  hero  becomes  a  bore  at  last. 

Emerson  Representative  Men,  Uses  of  Great  Men  p.  26. 

At  last  as  marble  rock  he  standeth  still. 
Tasso  Godfrey  of  Bulloigne  tr.  by  Fairfax,  bk.  vi,  st.  27. 


57  Defined  and  Illustrated  at  all 

AT   AL.L. 

The  phrase  at  all  has  been  objected  to  by  some  critics, 
probably  because — like  all  idioms  —  it  defies  analysis.  It  is  cer- 
tainly not,  as  some  urge,  superfluous,  except  as  every  word  or 
phrase  used  merely  for  emphasis  is  superfluous.  "I  see  nothing 
at  alV  is  more  emphatic  than  "I  see  nothing."  It  is  as  if  the 
speaker  replied  to  unspoken  cross-questioning,  saying,  **  nothing 
of  any  kind,''  "nothing  whatever,"  "nothing  at  all.'' 

The  phrase  is  sustained  by  the  usage  of  the  very  best  author- 
ities. 

And  they  shall  be  no  more  two  nations,  neither  shall  they  be 
divided  into  two  kingdoms  any  more  at  all.         Ezek.  xxxvii,  22. 

I  find  in  him  no  fault  at  all.  John  xviii,  38. 

God  is  light,  and  in  him  is  no  darkness  at  all.         1  John  i,  5. 

Now,  this  no  more  dishonors  you  at  all 
Than  to  take  in  a  town  with  gentle  words. 

Shakespeare  Coriolanus  act  iii,  sc.  2. 

Tis  better  to  have  loved  and  lost 
Than  never  to  have  loved  at  all. 

Tennyson  In  Memoriam  xxvii,  st.  4. 

Verbs  and  Other  Antecedents 

[At  has  been  referred  in  a  continually  more  extensive  meas- 
ure to  the  idea  of  a  motion  or  direction  pressing  towards  or  aim- 
ing at  a  person  or  thing.  To  the  verbal  notions  come,  reach, 
fall,  hasten,  to  which  at  is  added  only  in  definite  combinations, 
are  attached  others,  as,  throw,  aim,  shoot,  strike,  grasp,  reach, 
bask,  spit,  hiss,  and  the  like,  mostly  with  the  expression  of  a 
hostile  tendency.       Maetzner  English  Grammar  vol.  ii,  p.  379.] 

It  may  be  added  that  in  many  of  these  cases  at  carries  a  dis- 
tinct implication  of  not  attaining,  as  in  its  use  with  strike,  grasp, 
catch,  snatch,  reach,  etc.  A  man  strikes  at  another  if  the  blow 
falls  short ;  if  it  reaches,  he  is  said  to  strike  him  rather  than  to 
strike  at  him.  So  in  the  proverb,  "Drowning  men  catch  at 
straws."    The  player  strikes  at  or  catches  at  the  ball  that  goes 


athwart  PREPOSITIONS  5§ 

by  him.  The  same  is  true  of  the  use  of  at  with  certain  nouns, 
as  attempt,  endeavor,  etc.  An  attempt  at  eloquence  is  a  failure 
to  be  eloquent. 

Erroneous  Usage 
**  Where  was  I  at,  Mr.  Speaker  ? "  This  celebrated  utterance 
justly  raised  a  question  as  to  the  sobriety  of  the  honorable  mem- 
ber. Where  is  not  to  be  followed  by  at  or  to.  The  correct 
phrase  is  not  '*  where  is  it  at  f  "  but  "  where  is  it  ?  "  not  **  where 
are  you  going  tof  but  simply  ''where  are  you  going?"  The 
sense  of  a f  is  virtually  included  in  there  and  where,  so  that  the 
repetition  of  at  is  redundant. 

ATHWART 

Athwart  is  derived  from  thtvart,  from  the  Icelandic  thvert, 
across,  from  thverr,  cross,  plus  the  prefix  a-. 
I.  Of  place  or  space  : 

1,  In  nautical  use,  from  side  to  side  of  (a  ship,  etc.) ;  across 
the  course  of ;  across ;  as,  a  framework  athwart  the  deck ;  a  fleet 
sailing  athwart  our  course. 

And  so  our  ship  fell  athwart  the  Portuguese  ship's  hawse. 

Defoe  Capt.  Singleton  ch.  11,  p.  137. 

While  sheeting  home,  we  saw  the  Agacucho  standing  athwart 
our  bows,  sharp  upon  the  wind,  cutting  through  the  head  seas 
like  a  knife.  Dana  Two  Years  before  the  Mast  ch.  10,  p.  47. 

Jones  now  determined  to  lay  his  ship  athwart  the  enemy's 
hawse.  A.  S.  Mackenzie  Paul  Jones  vol.  i,  ch.  8,  p.  183. 

2.  Of  position,  direction,  or  motion  in  general,  from  side  to 
side  of;  in  the  direction  of  the  breadth  of;  across  the  course  or 
path  of,  so  as  to  meet  or  fall  in  with ;  hence,  into  the  notice  or 
observation  of. 

She  drew  her  casement-curtain  by, 
And  glanced  athwart  the  glooming  flats. 

Tennyson  Mariana  st.  2. 


59  Defined  and  Illustrated  athwart 

II.  Figuratively,  so  as  to  cross,  thwart,  or  oppose ;  in  oppo- 
sition to ;  contrary  to ;  against ;  as,  athwart  our  plans. 

Whatsoever  comes  athwart  his  affection. 
Shakespeare  Much  Ado  about  Nothing  act  ii,  sc.  2. 

Heave  him  upon  your  winged  thoughts, 
Athwart  the  sea. 

Shakespeare  K.  Henry  V.  act  v,  chorus,  1.  8. 


VI — Prepositions  Defined  and  Illustrated 

BARRIIVO,  BATIIVO 

For  the  meaning  and  use  of  these  words,  see  Participial 
Prepositions. 

BEFORE 

Before  is  from  the  Anglo-Saxon  heforan,  which  is  composed 
of  the  prefix  be~,  by,  and  the  adverb  foran,  from  fore,  for,  be- 
fore, for. 

I,  Of  place  or  space : 

1.  Denoting  precedence,  ahead  of ;  in  advance  of ;  prece- 
ding ;  in  front  of ;  as,  heralds  went  before  the  king. 

I  had  rather,  forsooth,  go  before  yon  like  a  man  than  follow 
him  like  a  dwarf. 

Shakespeare  Merry  Wives  of  Windsor  act  iii,  so.  3. 

Sleep,  gentle  heavens,  before  the  prow. 

Tennyson  In  Memoriam  ix,  st.  4. 

The  sparkle  and  tremor  of  purple  sea 
That  rises  before  you,  a  flickering  hill, 
On  and  on  to  the  shut  of  the  sky. 

Lowell  Pictures  from  Appledore  div.  iv,  1.  5. 

King  Solomon,  before  his  palace  gate 
At  evening,  on  the  pavement  tessellate 
Was  walking  with  a  stranger  from  the  East. 

Longfellow  Wayside  Inn,  Azrael  in  pt.  iii,  st.  1. 

2.  Of  position,  face  to  face  with;  in  the  presence  of;  in  front 
of;  as,  the  prisoner  stood  before  the  court. 

O  come,  let  us  worship  and  bow  down:  let  us  kneel  before 
the  Lord  our  maker.  Ps.  xcv,  6. 

As  a  being  with  a  will,  man  cannot  avoid  putting  before  him 
certain  aims  and  principles  of  conduct. 

Bosanquet  Hist,  of  Esthetic  ch.  10,  p.  250. 

(60) 


61  Prepositions  Defined  and  Illustrated     before 

II.  Of  time: 

Prior  to ;  anterior  to ;  earlier  than ;  sooner  than ;  as,  blossoms 
come  before  fruit. 

Make  me  feel  the  wild  pulsation  that  I  felt  before  the  strife. 

Tennyson  Locksley  Hall  st.  65. 

This  sad  affair  had  chanced  about  thirty  years  before  the 
action  of  our  story  commences. 

Hawthorne  House  of  Seven  Gables  ch.  1,  p.  27. 

The  shellbark  alone  drops  its  leaves  before  they  are  tinted  in 
autumn.     W.  Flagg  Year  Among  the  Trees,  The  Hickory  p.  157. 

In  the  summer  [1642]  before  the  confederation  of  the  Colonies, 
the  first  Commencement  of  Harvard  College  was  held. 

Palfrey  New  England  vol.  ii,  ch.  1,  p.  48. 

Before  selection  can  take  place,  the  fittest  must  already  be  in 
existence.      Janet  Final  Causes  tr.  by  Affleck,  bk.  i,  ch.  7,  p.  307. 

The  pilot  .  .  .  was  an  old  Dutch  skipper,  and  had  a  habit  of 
spitting  on  his  hands  before  every  order  he  gave,  as  if  the  effort 
was  a  manual  exertion.  Macready  Reminis.  ch.  20,  p.  237. 

III.  Of  various  relations: 

1.  In  advance  of,  as  regards  development,  condition,  or 
attainment;  higher  than;  superior  to;  formerly,  su^assing  in 
rank  or  eminence.     (Compare  I.,  1.) 

As  Vane  was  before  his  age  in  religion  ...  so  also  he  was 
before  his  age  in  politics.  P.  Hood  Cromwell  ch.  18,  p.  206. 

2.  Within  the  jurisdiction,  cognizance,  or  power  of  (com- 
pare I.,  2);  demanding  action  or  attention;  as,  the  motion  is 
before  the  house :  sometimes  used  in  solemn  invocation,  oath,  or 
affirmation;  as,  before  God  I  affirm.     (Compare  I.,  2.) 

3.  Driven  in  front  of;  moved  on  by;  overcome  by;  as,  the 
ship  sailed  before  the  wind ;  he  carried  all  before  him. 

How  many  hopes  are  like  the  spider's  web,  woven  in  the  night, 
bright  in  the  morning  dew,  perishing  before  the  first  footfall  I 

H.  W.  Beecher  Norwood  ch.  38,  p.  351. 


bebind  PREPOSITIONS  62 

Sooner  or  later  every  intellectual  canker  disappears  before 
earnest  work.  Tyndall  Hcntrs  of  Exercise  ch.  5,  p.  62. 

Black  brumal  clouds  driven  before  furious  blasts. 

R.  F.  Burton  Lake  Regions  Cent.  Afr  ch.  3,  p.  65. 

4.  In  preference  to ;  in  comparison  with ;  sooner  than ;  rather 
than ;  as,  they  will  die  before  yielding. 

Prefer  a  noble  life  before  a  long. 

Shakespeare  Coriolanus  act  iii,  sc.  1. 

Pay  him  six  thousand  and  deface  the  bond : 
Double  six  thousand,  and  then  treble  that, 
Before  a  friend  of  this  description 
Shall  lose  a  hair  through  Bassanio's  fault 

Shakespeare  Merchant  of  Venice  act  iii,  sc.  2. 

As  these  white  robes  are  soil'd  and  dark, 

To  yoMer  shining  ground; 
As  this  pale  taper's  earthly  spark, 

To  yonder  argent  round ; 
So  shows  my  soul  before  the  Lamb, 

My  spirit  before  Thee. 

Tennyson  Saint  Agnes'  Eve  st.  2. 

BEHIIVD 

Behind  is  derived  from  the  Anglo  Saxon  behindan,  from  the 
adverb  hindan,  behind  (connected  with  hind,  hinder) ,  plus  the 
prefix  be-,  by,  on,  etc. 

I.  Of  place  or  space: 

1.  At  the  back  of ;  on  the  back  or  farther  side  of ;  following 
after ;  after :  as,  stand  behind  me ;  he  is  behind  that  tree ;  behind 
the  curtain. 

This  wild  assault  was  soon  checked,  by  grape  from  two  guns 
planted  behind  a  traverse  on  the  ramparts.  W.  F.  P.  Napier 
War  in  the  Peninsula  vol.  i,  bk.  v,  ch.  2,  p.  381. 

Behind  a  cloud  the  moon  doth  veil  her  light. 

R.  H.  Stoddard  The  Castle  in  the  Air  st.  8. 

Behind  these  came  two  p^irsuivants  at-arms  in  tabards. 

Howard  Pyle  Men  of  Iron  ch.  24,  p.  224 


63  Defined  and  Illustrated  bebind 

A  .  .  .  screen  or  net-work,  behind  which  the  dark  forms  of 
the  natives  were  seen  glancing  to  and  fro. 

Prescott  Mexico  vol.  i,  bk.  ii,  ch.  4,  p.  276. 

Cuchillo  closed  behind  him  the  wattle  of  bamboos  that  served 
as  a  door.  Mayne  Reid  Wood-Rangers  ck  9,  p.  67. 

2.  To  or  toward  the  rear  of  ;  to,  toward,  or  in  the  space 
left  by;  back  of;  as,  look  behind  you. 

Look  not  behind  thee,  neither  stay  thou  in  all  the  plain. 

Gen.  xix,  17, 

Get  thee  behind  me.  Satan.  Matt,  xvi,  23. 

II.  Of  time : 

In  the  time  previous  to;  in  time  left  by;  remaining  after 
the  death  or  departure  of;  as,  he  left  a  fortune  behind  him. 

Spirits  of  peace,  where  are  ye  ?  are  ye  all  gone. 
And  leave  me  here  in  wretchedness  behind  ye  ? 

Shakespeare  K.  Henry  VIII.  act  iv,  sc.  2. 

But  he,  whose  loss  our  tears  deplore. 
Has  left  behind  him  more  than  fame. 

Bryant  In  Memory  of  William  Leggett  st.  1, 

As  in  the  winters  left  behind, 
Again  our  ancient  games  had  place. 

Tennyson  In  Memoriam  Ixxviii,  st.  3. 

III.  Of  various  relations ; 

1.  From  the  local  idea  of  supporters  standing  at  one's  back, 
in  a  position  to  give  aid  to  or  make  use  of;  ready  to  aid  or  sup- 
port; sustaining;  supporting;  as,  he  has  capital  behind  him.  the 
administration  is  behind  the  movement 

It  was  not  the  famous  needle-gun  .  ,  .  which  won  the  late 
Prussian  victories,  but  the  intelligence  and  discipline  of  the 
Prussian  soldier,  the  man  behind  the  gun. 

Mathews  Words  ch.  1,  p,  48. 

And  every  rustler  ^nd  thief,  every  road  agent  and  train  rob- 
ber from  the  Canadian  line  to  Kansas  knows  that  shotgim  and 
the  man  behind  it.  N.  F.  World  Oct.  4. 1903. 


below  Prepositions  64 

2.  Not  so  well  advanced  as ;  in  the  rear  of,  as  regards  knowl- 
edge,  development,  etc. ;  inferior  to;  not  equal  to;  not  up  to;  as, 
behind  the  times ;  he  is  behind  his  class. 

The  cut  of  the  clothing  of  even  the  most  buckish  young  fel- 
lows is  behind  the  times. 

C.  D.  Warner  Saunterings,  Amsterdam  p.  34. 

Was  the  Mayflower  launched  by  cowards,  steered  by  men  behind 
their  time  ?  Lowell  Present  Crisis  st  15. 

Distinctions 
After — behind:    See  under  after. 

BEL.O\r 

Below  is  from  the  adjective  low  plus  the  prefix  be-,  by,  on,  etc. 

1.  Of  place: 

!•  Of  position,  farther  down  than ;  not  so  high  as ;  lower 
than ;  under ;  beneath ;  as,  below  the  knee ;  beloto  the  surface  of 
the  water. 

I  hear  one  thrumming  a  guitar  below  stairs. 

Thoreau  Winter,  Jan.  13,  1857  p.  172. 

He  never  counted  him  a  man 
Would  strike  below  the  knee. 
Scott  Lay  of  the  Last  Minstrel  can  iii,  st.  17,  1.  8. 

2.  Of  direction,  course,  etc.,  lower  down  than  ;  as,  the  town 
below  this  on  the  river. 

.  .  .  Him  ril  desire 
To  meet  me  at  the  consecrated  fount, 
A  league  below  the  city. 
.  Shakespeare  Measure  for  Measure  act  iv,  sc.  3. 

II.  Of  derived  meanings,  in  figurative  use : 

1.  Lower  than  in  degree,  rank,  value,  dignity,  etc. ;  inferior 
to :  under ;  as,  below  the  captain  is  the  lieutenant ;  the  yield  was 
below  the  average. 


65  Defined  and  Illustrated  beneath 

A  proud  and  sensitive  nature  finds  it  far  easier,  often,  to 
speak  confidingly  to  one  in  a  station  below  him  than  to  an  equal 
or  a  superior,  H.  W.  Beecher  Norwood  ch.  37,  p.  234. 

The  boy  was  immediately  below  his  grandfather  in  his  class, 
and     .  .  *  trapped '  or  corrected  him  in  his  reading. 

N.  MACLEOD  Highland  Parish,  Peasantry  p.  139. 

2.  Too  low  to  be  worthy  of ;  unworthy  of ;  beneath ;  as, 
such  action-  is  below  contempt. 

[Beneath  contempt  is  more  usual  and  is  preferable.] 

It  is  possible  to  be  below  flattery  as  well  as  above  it. 

Macaulay  England  vol.  i,  p.  151. 

I  shall  cheerfully  bear  the  reproach  of  having  descended 
below  the  dignity  of  history.       Macaulay  England  vol.  1,  p.  28. 

Distinctions 

Below — beneath — dovm — under — underneath :  See  Distinc- 
tions under  beneath. 

BENEATH 

Beneath  is  derived  from  the  Anglo-Saxon  beneothan,  from 
the  prefix  be-,  by,  plus  neothan,  below. 

I.  Of  place  or  space,  in  a  lower  place  or  position  than ;  lower 
than ;  underneath ;  below ;  under ;  as,  a  hidden  rock  beneath  the 
waves. 

[In  a  local  regard,  these  prepositions  {beneath  and  underneath) 
point  to  the  lower  position  which  an  object  takes  or  receives 
with  respect  to  that  dependent  upon  them,  whether  with  perpen- 
dicular or  non-perpendicular  depth,  with  or  without  contact 
with  the  other,  as  well  with  as  without  covering  an  object. 

Maetzner  English  Grammar  vol.  ii,  p.  459.] 

Beneath  her  stretched  the  temples  and  the  tombs, 
The  city  sickening  of  its  own  thick  breath. 
And  over  all  the  sleepless  Pleiades. 

Aldrich  Judith  pt.  1,  st.  2. 

From  beneath  the  flap  of  an  enormous  pocket  of  a  soiled  vest, 
,  .  .  projected  an  instrument. 

Cooper  Last  of  the  Mohicans  ch.  1,  p.  8. 
5 


beneatli  PREPOSITIONS  66 

Seek  yonder  brake  beneath  the  cliff, — 
There  lies  Red  Murdoch,  stark  and  stiff. 

Scott  Lady  of  the  Lake  can.  5,  st.  18. 

The  great  elm -trees  in  the  gold -green  meadows  were  fast 
asleep  above,  and  the  cows  were  fast  asleep  beneath  them. 

KiNGSLEY  Water-Babies  ch.  1.  p.  14. 

II.  In  derived  or  figurative  use: 

1.  Of  influence,  power,  or  control,  often  denoting  subordina- 
tion, dependence,  or  protection  :  influenced  or  controlled  by  ; 
pressed  or  crushed  by ;  subdued  or  dominated  by ;  sheltered  by ; 
dependent  on ;  under  the  power,  dominion,  or  protection  of ; 
under ;  as,  the  boughs  bent  beneath  their  load. 

One  of  his  [Murillo's]  Madonnas  was  so  saintly  beautiful  in 
the  tranced  joy  of  her  divine  maternity,  that  I  felt  my  knees 
giving  way  beneath  me,  obedient  to  the  instinct  of  adoration. 

Grace  Greenwood  Haps  and  Mishaps  ch.  3,  p.  56. 

And  the  waves  bound  beneath  me  as  a  steed 
That  knbws  his  rider. 

Byron  Childe  Harold  can.  3,  st.  2. 

I  think  our  country  sinks  beneath  the  yoke ; 
It  weeps,  it  bleeds. 

Shakespeare  Macbeth  act  iv,  sc.  3, 1.  89. 

An  empirical  acquaintance  with  facts  rises  to  a  scientific 

knowledge  of  facts  as  soon  as  the  mind  discovers  beneath  the 

multiplicity  of  single  productions  the  unity  of  an  organic  system. 

Max  Muller  Science  of  Language  first  series,  lect.  i,  p.  26. 

2.  Of  inferiority,  inferior  to;  unsuited  to  the  dignity  of; 
lower  in  rank  than  ;  unworthy  of ;  under ;  below ;  as,  he  is 
beneath  my  notice. 

It  was  more  dangerous  to  be  above  that  standard  (of  female 
attainments)  than  beneath  it. 

Macaulay  England  voL  i,  ch.  8,  p.  818. 

A  most  abject  and  brutified  nature,  totally  beneath  the  human 
character.  Irving  Knickerbocker  bk.  i,  ch.  5,  p.  69. 


67  Defined  and  Illustrated  beneatu 

Distinctions 
Below — beneath  —  down — under — underneath : 

[  Under  strictly  implies  that  another  object  is  directly  upon  or 
over  in  a  vertical  line.  Below  signifies  that  one  object  is  lower 
than  another,  so  as  to  be  looked  down  upon  from  it  or  hidden 
from  view  by  it ;  as,  below  (not  under  nor  beneath)  the  horizon. 

Standard  Dictionary  ] 

Below,  beneath,  and  under  are  in  many  cases  interchange- 
able. The  distinctions  in  their  use  are  so  subtle  as  often  to 
seem  arbitrary.  We  may  say  below,  beneath,  or  under  the  stars, 
but  scarcely  below  or  beneath  the  sun,  though  under  the  sun  is 
very  common.  We  may  say  below  stairs,  though  doum-stairs  is 
more  common;  as,  " I  saw  that  doit'n-stairs. "  Beneath  or  under 
the  stairs  would  indicate  that  the  stairway  stretched  above  the 
objtjct;  as,  the  incendiary  placed  the  combustibles  under  the 
stairs  The  phrase  down-stairs,  or  down  the  stairs,  has  a  special 
meaning  of  its  own  implying  motion;  as,  to  fall  down-stairs, 
where  neither  below,  beneath,  nor  under  could  be  used.  Simi 
larly  we  say,  "  The  man  has  gone  down  the  river,"  meaning  along 
the  descending  course  of  the  stream ;  we  could  not  say  that  the 
man  has  gone  below,  beneath,  under,  or  underneath  the  river, 
unless  we  referred  to  the  descent  of  a  diver  or  to  passage 
through  a  tunnel.  So  a  ship  may  sail  down,  but  not  below, 
beneath,  under,  nor  underneath  the  river,  unless  in  the  case  of  a 
submarine  vessel.  We  may  say  of  a  person,  "His  knees  trem- 
bled beneath  him";  it  would  be  impossible  to  say,  "His  knees 
trembled  below  him."  Conversely,  a  student  says  of  another, 
"He  is  in  the  class  below  me,"  implying  simple  gradation  in 
rank;  "the  class  beneath  me"  would  imply  inferiority  or  con- 
tempt, and  hence  is  never  used  in  such  connection.  Under  has 
the  special  meaning  of  subject  to,  which  is  not  in  either  of  the 
associated  prepositions.  Hence  we  speak  of  an  object  or  person 
as  under  our  care  or  under  our  charge  in  a  worthy  sense;  as, 
the  jewels  or  the  children  under  our  care.  Below  could  scarcely 
be  used  in  such  case.     We  may  say  contemptuously,  "That  is 


beside  Prepositions  6§ 

beneath  your  care"  or  ''beneath  your  attention,"  i  e.,  unworthy 
of  it.  * '  Beneath  one's  charge  "  is  not  used.  Underneath,  which  is 
practically  equivalent  to  under  in  literal  reference  to  place,  has 
not  the  derived  or  metaphorical  use.  Below  does  not  carry  the 
intimation  of  protection  that  is  often  found  in  beneath  or  under. 
We  do  not  speak  of  the  hen  gathering  her  brood  below  her 
wings ;  we  might  say  beneath  her  wings,  but  more  naturally  say 
under.    The  old  hymn  reads: 

**  Beneath  the  shadow  of  thy  throne 
Thy  saints  have  dwelt  secure." 

For  the  contrasted  prepositions  above — on — over,  see  Dis- 
tinctions under  above. 

BESIDE 

Beside  is  from  the  Anglo-Saxon  be  sldan,  by  the  side  ol 

I.  Of  place  or  space : 

At  the  side  of;  in  proximity  to;  near;  close  to;  as,  a  path 

beside  the  river. 

Beside  the  bounteous  board  of  home. 

Whittier  For  an  Autumn  Festival  st.  10. 

And  I  have  seen  thee  blossoming 
Beside  the  snow-bank's  edges  cold. 

Bryant  The  Yellow  Violet  st.  3. 

The  faithful  Sancho  still  kept  guard  beside  his  little  master. 
Louisa  M.  Alcott  Under  the  Lilacs  ch.  10,  p.  93. 

Beside  him  was  the  croupier,  a  very  boy,  whose  duty  it  was 
to  rake  in  the  winnings  and  pay  out  the  losses,  which  he  did 
with  wonderful  dexterity. 

C.  B.  Gillespie  in  Century  Magazine  June,  1891,  p.  262. 

When  beside  me  in  the  dale.    He  carroUed  lays  of  love. 

Goldsmith  Hermit  st.  30. 

II.  Of  various  relations,  more  or  less  based  upon  the  local : 
I,  In  comparison  with  (as  if  the  objects  were  placed  side 

by  side  to  be  compared);  compared  with;  my  merit  is  little 
beside  yours. 


69  Defined  and  Illustrated  beside 

Imports  there  loss,  beside  the  present  need  ? 

Milton  Comus  1.  287. 

Nosegays !  leave  them  for  the  waking, 

Throw  them  earthward  where  they  grew. 
Dim  are  such,  beside  the  breaking 
Amaranths  he  looks  unto. 
Folded  eyes  see  brighter  colors  than  the  open  ever  do. 

E.  B.  Browning  A  Child  Asleep  st.  2. 

2.  Outside  of : 

(a)  Away  or  apart  from;  aside  from;  as,  this  discussion  is 
beside  the  matter  in  hand. 

The  distinction  ...  is  an  altogether  false  one  and  beside  the 
question  Robertson  Sermons  third  series,  ser.  xiii,  p.  158. 

(b)  Alienated  from;  deviating  from;  out  of;  far  from;  as, 
the  man  is  beside  himself. 

In  faith,  my  lord,  you  are  too  wilful -blame, 
And  since  your  coming  hither,  have  done  enough 
To  put  him  quite  beside  his  patience. 

Shakespeare  1  K.  Henry  IV.  act  iii,  so.  1. 

My  father  .  .  .  was  as  one  beside  himself,  being  in  ecstasy  or 
rapture  of  mind.  W.  Besant  For  Faith  and  Freedom  ch.  21,  p.  150. 

*  Ecstasy '  was  madness ;  it  is  intense  delight ;  but  has  in  no 
wise  thereby  broken  with  the  meaning  from  which  it  started, 
since  it  is  the  nature  alike  of  madness  and  of  joy  to  set  men  out 
of  and  beside  themselves. 

Trench  On  the  Study  of  Words  led.  vi,  p.  274. 

(c)  In  addition  to;  over  and  above;  other  than;  except;  as, 
I  have  no  treasure  beside  this. 

Beside  the  sabbaths  of  the  Lord,  and  beside  your  gifts,  and 
beside  all  your  vows,  and  beside  all  your  freewill  offerings, 
which  ye  give  unto  the  Lord.  Lev.  xxiii,  38. 

[In  this  sense  besides  is  the  proper  form,  and  now  commonly 
used.  Standard  Dictionary.} 

Distinctions 
Along — beside  —  by :    See  under  along. 


besides    PREPOSITIOXS  DEFINED  AND  ILLUSTRATED  70 

BESIDES 

Besides  is  etymologically  the  same  as  beside,  and  was  formerly 
used  interchangeably  with  it,  as 

Alas,  Sir,  how  fell  yon  besides  yonr  five  wits 

Shakespeare  Twelfth  Night  act  iv,  sc  2,  1.  92. 

Now,  however,  besides  is  quite  closely  restricted  to  the  sense 
oi  beside,  II.,  2  (c),  in  which  sense  beside  is  now  little  used, 
except  in  poetry  or  elevated  style,  the  process  of  discrimina- 
tion elsewhere  referred  to,  which  is  working  throughout  our 
language  toward  the  result  of  one  word  for  one  meaning,  ma- 
king its  way  also  here,  to  distinguish  these  closely  related  forms. 

1.  In  addition  to;  in  connection  with;  other  than;  over  and 
above ;  as,  besides  this  we  have  as  much  more. 

The  caloristic  doctrine,  besides  its  fundamental  hypothesis, 
which  we  now  know  to  be  wrong,  had  given  an  absurd  and 
illogical  test  for  quantity  of  heat  in  a  body. 

Wm.  Thomson  in  Encyc,  Brit.  9th  ed.,  vol  xi,  p.  557. 

2.  Apart  from ;  beyond ;  except ;  bating ;  save ;  as,  I  care  for 
nothing  besides  this. 

The  Marquis  had  not  much  besides  his  palace. 

N.  P.  Willis  Lady  Jane  can.  2,  st.  32. 

Distinctions 
Besides — but — except — save — without:  See  under  but. 


VII— Prepositions  Defined  and  Illustrated 

BETVTEEN 

Between  is  derived  from  the  Anglo-Saxon  betweonum,  from 
be  ,  by,  plus  tweonum,  dative  plural  of  tweon,  double,  two 

I.  Of  place : 

In  or  at  some  point  within  the  space  which  separates  (two 
places  or  objects) ,  as,  between  two  fires;  he  stepped  between  the 
combatants. 

[Between  is  strictly  applicable  only  to  two  things,  but  this 
may  be  understood  as  including  cases  where  a  number  of  things 
are  discriminated  collectively  as  two  wholes  or  as  taken  in  pairs, 
or  where  one  thing  is  set  off  as  against  a  number  of  others; 
among  is  used  in  cases  of  distributive  discrimination. 

Standard  Dictionary  ] 

And  he  [Abram]  went  on  his  journeys  from  the  south  even 
to  Beth-el,  unto  the  place  where  his  tent  had  been  at  the  begin- 
ning, between  Beth  el  and  Hai.  Gen  xiii,  3. 

^A  break  between  the  house  tops  shows    The  moon. 

Matthew  Arnold  A  Summer  Night  st.  1. 

Every  step  of  the  way  lies  between  two  precipices,  and  under 
toppling  crags,  Tyndall  Hours  of  Exercise  ch.  3,  p.  30. 

When  the  distance  between  two  bodies  is  doubled  their  mutual 
attraction  falls  off  to  one-fourth  of  what  it  formerly  was. 

P.  G.  Tait  Recent  Advances  lect.  xiv,  p.  356. 

And,  for  the  winter  fireside  meet, 
Betiveen  the  andirons'  straddling  feet,  . 
The  apples  sputtered  in  a  row, 

Whittier  Snow-Bound  st.  9. 

V"  What  silence  dwells  between    Those  severed  lips  serene ! 

Jean  Ingelow  The  Snowdrop  Monument  st.  4. 

(71) 


between  Prepcsitions  72 

II.  Of  time: 

Intermediate  in  relation  to  (two  times  or  periods  of  time) ; 
as,  between  morning  and  noon;  between  6  and  7  o'clock. 

Between  the  acting  of  a  dreadful  thing 
And  the  first  motion,  all  the  interim  is 
Like  a  phantasma,  or  a  hideous  dream. 

Shakespeare  Julius  Ccesar  act.  ii,  sc.  1, 1.  63. 

Between  the  dark  and  the  daylight, 
When  the  night  is  beginning  to  lower. 

Longfellow  The  Children's  Hour  1.  1. 

No  true  form  of  figurative  art  intervened  between  Greek 
sculpture  and  Italian  painting. 

J.  A.  Symonds  Renaissance  in  Italy,  Fine  Arts  p.  8. 

III,  Of  various  relations : 

1,  Intermediate  in  relation  to,  as  qualities,  conditions,  char- 
acters, etc. : 

(a)  Denoting  transition,   agreement,   or  likeness  ;    as,   the 
flavor  is  between  sour  and  sweet ;  hej.ssonie  things  between  ^nsLve  ^ 
and  igqi. 

i<  Stood  on  the  bound  between 

Man  social  and  man  savage,  dark  and  massive. 
Bulwer-Lytton  Lost  Tales  of  Miletus,  The  Secret  Way  st.  34. 

The  English  cabinet  .  .  .  resolved  to  follow  a  middle  course 
"^  between  peace  and  war.        Lingard  England  vol.  vi,  ch.  1,  p.  38. 

^    Virtue  is  nothing  but  a  just  temper  between  propensities  any- 
one of  which,  if  indulged  to  excess,  becomes  vice. 

Macaulay  England  vol.  i,  ch.  2,  p.  190. 

He  was  now  in  a  chrysalis  state — putting  off  the  worm  and 
putting"  on  the  dragon-fly^a  kind  of  intermediate  grub  between 
sycophant  and  oppressor.  Macaulay  Essays,  Bacon  p.  248. 

(b)  Denoting  contrast,  difference,  or  unlikeness;  as,  the  dif- 
ference between  violet  and  red. 

The  chasm  between  vertebrates  and  invertebrates  is  one  which 
it  has  taxed  the  ingenuity  of  transmutationists  to  bridge. 

Winchell  Doctrine  of  Evolution,  Objections  p.  63. 


73  Defined  and  Illustrated  between 

^  That  difference  which  is  always  to  be  seen  between  the  stroke 
of  talent  and  the  stroke  of  geniua 

Helen  Hunt  Jackson  Ramona  ch.  1,  p.  15. 

There  is  snch  a  difference  between  far-reaching  and  far- fetch- 
ing. Lowell  Among  My  Books,  Shakespeare  Once  More  in  first 
series,  p.  193. 

Between  saving  a  cent  and  spending  a  cent  there  is  two  cents 
difference.  C.  C.  Coffin  Caleb  Krinkle  ck  12,  p.  107. 

The  difference  between  extreme  temperatures  at  a  station  is 
called  a  range.     A.  W.  Greely  American  Weather  ch.  10,  p.  120. 

2.  Denoting  joint  or  reciprocal  action  in  agreement  or  oppo- 
sition ;  with  relation  to  both  (or  all)  of ;  involving  both  (or  all) 
of ;  as,  a  compact  or  a  qnarrel  between  friends ;  between  ourselves. 

And  I  will  put  enmity  between  thee  and  the  woman,  and 
between  thy  seed  and  her  seed ;  it  shall  bruise  thy  head,  and  thou 
shalt  bruise  his  heel.  Gen.  iii,  15. 

The  struggle  between  the  two  fierce  Teutonic  breeds  [Saxon 
and  Dane]  lasted  during  six  generations. 

Macaulay  England  vol.  i,  ch.  1,  p.  8. 

The  consummation  of  peace  between  Great  Britain  and  the 

United  States  of  America  was  the  sublime  result  of  powers 

which  were  conspiring  together  for  the  renovation  of  the  world. 

Bancroft  United  States  vol.  v,  epoch  v,  ch.  1,  p.  46t 

There  was  a  triparite  treaty  afterwards  agreed  to  between 
England,  France,  and  Austria. 

McCarthy  Our  Own  Times  vol.  ii,  ch.  28,  p.  344. 

The  daily  widening  schism  between  Lutherans  and  Calviuists 
seemed  to  bode  little  good  to  the  cause  of  religious  freedom. 

Motley  Dutch  Republic  vol.  iii,  pt.  iv,  ch.  4,  p.  6. 

They  had  captured  a  wolf  between  them,  and  had  brought  in 
his  scalp  for  bounty.  Cooper  Pioneers  ch.  9,  p.  142. 

3.  From  one  to  another  of:  implying  motion  or  a  continuous 
connection;  as,  the  steamer  between  New  York  and  Hamburg; 
the  railway  betioeen  New  York  and  Boston. 

I  did  go  between  them  [the  lovers]  as  I  said. 

Shakespeare  All's  Well  act.  v,  sc.  3, 1.  259. 


lietwixt  Prepositions  74 

He  may  come  and  go  between  you  both. 

Shakespeare  Merry  Wives  of  Windsor  act.  ii,  sc.  2,  1. 130. 

The  appearance  of  Joseph  in  Egypt  is  the  first  distinct  point 
of  contact  between  Sacred  and  secular  history. 

A.  P.  Stanley  Jewish  Church  vol.  i,  pt.  i,  lect.  iv,  p.  67. 

Distinctions 

Between— betwixt :  Though  no  close  line  can  be  drawn,  it 
may  be  said  that  betwixt  in  modem  use  seems  to  incline  rather 
to  the  sense  of  separation  than  of  union  We  should  hardly 
say,  "This  will  be  a  bond  of  union  betwixt  them,"  but  "a  bond 
of  union  between  them."  So  we  say,  "I  mention  this  in  confi- 
dence betiveen  [not  betwixt]  ourselves. " 

,  Erroneous  Use 
The  impossible  combination  of  between  with  a  singular  object 
is  a  somewhat  common  error;  as,  "There  were  ten  boats  with  a 
space  of  twenty  feet  between  each."  The  number  of  objects 
governed  by  between  can  never  be  less  than  two ,  in  other  words, 
between  can  not  be  used  of  a  single  object,  as  in  the  following 

And  with  a  gap  of  a  whole  night  between  every  one. 

Dickens  Martin  Chuzzlewit  ch,  8,  p.  152. 

Correct  usage  requires  us  to  say,  " between  each  two," 

*' between  every  two,"  or  " between  one  and  another." 


BETYTIXT 

Betwixt  is  kindred  in  derivation  to  and  a  close  synonym  of 
between. 

You  shall  see,  as  I  have  said,  great  difference  betwixt  our 
Bohemia  and  your  Sicilia. 

Shakespeare  Winter's  Tale  act  i,  sc.  1,  1.  4. 

Nor  can  the  foot 
Of  disembodied  spirit,  nor  angel  wing, 
Transgress  the  deep  inexorable  gulf 
Betwixt  the  worlds  of  darkness  and  of  light. 
BiCKERSTETH  Yesterday,  Today,  and  For  Ever  bk.  iii,  1.  650. 


75  Defined  and  Illustrated  beyond 

BEYOND 

Beyond  is  derived  from  the  Anglo-Saxon  begeondan,  from 
be-t  by,  plus  geond,  yond,  yonder. 

I.  Of  place  or  space  : 

Farther  than;  more  distant  than;  on  the  farther  side  of, 
past ;  over ;  as,  beyond  the  turn  of  the  road ;  beyond  the  river. 

[The  transfer  of  this  preposition  to  other  fields  is  peculiar  to 
modem  times ;  the  oldest  period  of  the  language  employs  it  for  re- 
lations of  space  only.  Maetzner  English  Grammar  vol.  ii,  p.  470.  ] 

Sweet  the  memory  is  to  me 

Of  a  land  beyond  the  sea, 

Where  the  waves  and  mountains  meet. 

Longfellow  Amalfi  st.  1. 

The  first  settlers  beyond  the  Alleghanies  were  a  heroic  race. 
E.  KiRKE  in  Harper's  Monthly,  Feb.,  1888  p.  420. 

He  [Philip  EE.]  had  long  since  descried  the  dark  storm  that 
was  mustering  beyond  the  Alps. 

Prescott  Philip  II.  vol.  i,  bk.  i,  ch.  5,  p.  147. 

Time  doth  not  breathe  on  its  fadeless  bloom, 
For  beyond  the  clouds,  and  beyond  the  tomb. 
It  is  there,  it  is  there,  my  child  I 

Mrs.  Hemans  The  Better  Land. 

II.  Of  time : 

According  to  the  analogy  of  spatial  relations,  extending 
farther  than ;  later  than ;  past ;  as,  beyond  the  usual  hour. 

My  grief  stretches  itself  beyond  the  hour  of  death. 

Shakespeare  K,  Henry  IV.  act  iv,  sc.  4, 1.  57. 

III.  Of  various  relations  : 

Surpassing;  exceeding;  superior  to;  better  than;  more  than; 
out  of  reach  of;  past;  over  and  above;  above;  over;  as,  to  live 
beyond  one's  means;  tempted  beyond  endurance;  beautiful  be 
yond  description ;  it  is  beyond  my  knowledge. 

A  mere  stroll,  which  requires  no  exertion,  and  does  not  fatigue, 
will  not  be  injurious  before  or  after  eating,  but  exercise  beyond 
this  limit  is  hurtful  at  such  times.    Combe  Physiology  ch.  5,  p.  127. 


but  Prepositions  76 

Latimer  went  beyond  everybody  else  in  the  miscellaneous 
assortment  of  topics  he  used  to  bring  together. 

Craik  Eng.  Lit.  and  Lang. ,  Latimer  in  vol.  i,  p.  438. 

Your  bounty  is  beyond  my  speaking ; 
But  though  my  mouth  be  dumb,  my  heart  shall  thank  you. 

Nicholas  Rowe  Jane  Shore  act  ii,  sc.  1. 

What's  fame?  a  fancy'd  life  in  others'  breath, 
A  thing  beyond  us,  e'en  before  our  death. 

Pope  Essay  on  Man  ep.  iv,  1.  337. 

BUT 

But  is  derived  from  the  Anglo-Saxon  butan,  except,  without, 
being  originally  an  adverb  meaning  outside,  from  the  prefix  be-, 
by,  plus  utan,  out. 

I,  [Obsolete  or  dialectic]  Of  place  or  space  ; 
Outside  of ;  out ;  without ;  as,  to  gang  but  the  house. 

This  sense,  which  is  now  known  chiefly  as  a  Scotticism,  is 
worth  considering,  as  showing  the  fundamental  meaning,  on 
which  the  ordinary  and  accepted  usage  is  based. 

II.  Of  relations  in  general : 

Leaving  out;  with  ^exception  of;  excepting;  except;  save; 
saving ;  barring ;  as,  I  found  all  but  one. 

I  have  known  ministers  who  always  unconsciously  sifted 
their  audience  and  preached  to  nothing  but  th'e  bolted  wheat. 

•^.  W.  Beecher  Yale  Lectures  lect.  vii,  p.  162. 

Nothing  ought  to  be  held  laudable  or  becoming,  but  what 
nature  itself  should  prompt  us  to  think  so. 

Steele  Spectator  Mar.  7,  1710. 

Nothing  was  audible  but  the  hum  of  the  evening  insects  and 
the  regular  muffled  beat  of  the  oars  over  the  water. 

G.  W.  Curtis  Trumps  ch.  4,  p.  27. 

Thieves'  language,  or  that  dialect  for  which  there  is  no  name, 
but  one  from  its  own  vocabulary,  viz.  Slang,  is  of  greater  value 
in  philology  than  in  commerce. 

R,  G.  Latham  English  Language  pt.  vii,  p.  572. 


77  Defined  and  Illustrated  by 

Such  was  old  Arthur  Gride,  in  whose  face  there  was  not  a 
wrinkle,  in  whose  dress  there  was  not  one  spare  fold  or  plait, 
but  expressed  the  most  covetous  and  griping  penury. 

Dickens  Nicholas  NicMehy  vol.  ii,  p.  233. 

There  was  nothing  for  it  hut  to  give  way. 

Froude  Hist  Essays,  Erasmus  and  Luther  lect.  i,  p.  25. 

[This  last  quotation  is  an  example  of  what  readily  occurs  in 
English,  though  less  frequently  than  in  Latin  and  Greek— the 
use  of  an  infinitive  as  the  object  of  a  preposition.] 

Distinctions 
Besides — but — except — save — without:  But,  except,  and  save 
(the  last-named  now  chiefly  poetical)  are  all  restrictive,  denoting 
something  taken  out  of  a  general  statement,  an  enumeration,  or 
the  like  ;  as,  I  saw  no  one  but  (or  except)  him.  Besides  and 
without  have  a  more  positive  meaning;  as,  I  have  much  more 
besides  this  ;  I  have  enough  without  that ;  in  neither  of  which 
cases  could  we  use  but,  except,  or  save. 

BY 

By  is  from  the  Anglo-Saxon  bl,  big,  having  the  same  essential 
meaning. 

I.  Of  place  or  space  : 

1.  Next  to;  near;  alongside  of;  beside;  as,  he  came  and  sat 
by  me ;  the  house  stands  by  the  river. 

Then  I  was  by  him,  as  one  brought  up  with  him. 

Prov.  viii,  30. 

Jesus  took  a  child  and  set  him  by  him.  Luke  ix,  47. 

Moors  by  his  side  under  the  lea, 
While  night  invests  the  sea. 

Milton  Paradise  Lost  bk.  i,  1.  207. 

Should  I  leave  behind 
The  inviolate  island  of  the  sage  and  free 
And  seek  me  out  a  home  by  a  remoter  sea  ? 

Byron  Childe  Harold  can.  4,  st.  8. 


by  Prepositions  7S 

And  a  tree  with  a  moulder'd  nest 
On  its  barkless  bones,  stood  stark  by  the  dead. 

Tennyson  The  Dead  Prophet  st.  5. 

I  live  in  a  cottage  secluded  and  small, 
By  a  gnarly  old  apple-tree's  shade. 

Trowbridge  My  Brother  Ben  st.  2. 

2,  Along  the  line  or  course  of ;  alongside  of ;  beside ;  along ; 
as,  to  walk  by  the  river ;  the  river  flows  by  the  town. 

Siloa's  brook  that  flow'd    Fast  by  the  oracle  of  God. 

Milton  Paradise  Lost  bk.  i,  1.  12. 

By  lake  and  stream,  by  wood  and  glen, 
Our  stately  drove  we  follow. 

Whittier  The  Drovers  st.  4. 

Gigantiq  reeds  by  every  oozy  stream. 
Bank  and  luxuriant  under  cloudy  skies. 
BiCKERSTETH  Yesterday,  To-day,  and  For  Ever  bk.  iv,  1.  674. 

3,  Near  or  up  to,  and  beyond  ;  beyond  ;  past ;  as.  the  train 
flashed  by  us ;  we  have  gone  by  the  station. 

And  I  ran  by  him  without  speaking 
Like  a  flash  of  light. 

Tennyson  The  May  Queen  st.  5,  1.  2. 
II.  Of  time : 

1.  In  the  course  of;  in  the  time  of;  within  the  period  or  lapse 
of ;  during ;  as,  birds  that  fly  by  night ;  to  travel  by  day. 

Not  alone  by  day,  .  .  . 
But  in  the  weird  and  unsubstantial  sphere 
Of  slumber  did  her  beauty  hold  him  thrall. 

Aldrich  Wyndham  Towers  st.  7. 

And  Pan  by  noon  and  Bacchus  by  night,  .  .  . 
Follows  with  dancing  and  fills  with  delight 
The  Maenad  and  the  Bassarid. 

Swinburne  Atalanta  in  Calydon  clio.,  st.  6 

2.  On  or  before ;  not  later  than ;  as,  come  by  seven  o'clock. 

Let  me  have  Claudio's  head  sent  me  by  five. 
Shakespeare  Measure  for  Measure  act  iv,  sc.  2, 1. 123 


79  Defined  and  Illustrated  by 

Moonlight,  and  the  first  timid  tremblings  of  the  dawn,  were 
by  this  time  blending. 

De  Quincey  Miscell.  Essays,  Vision  of  Sudden  Death  p.  170. 

By  half  past  eleven  the  battle  became  general. 

Southey  Life  of  Nelson  ch.  7,  p.  248. 

3.  Taking  or  regarding  as  a  standard;  in  accordance  with; 

for  the  period  of ;  according  to ;  as,  to  work  by  the  day. 

All  the  winterers  were  hired  by  the  year. 

A.  Mackenzie  Voyages  from  Montreal,  Fur  Trade  p.  19. 

III.  Denoting  agency,  cause,  means,  or  instrument . 
1.  Through  the  direct  action  of  (especially  of  personal,  vol- 
untary, and  intelligent  action) ;  as,  this  wall  was  built  by  the 

Romans. 

The  fields  between 

Are  dewy-fresh,  browsed  by  deep-uddered  kine. 

Tennyson  The  Gardener's  Daughter  st.  3. 

The  fact  that  the  water  is  Salter  than  that  of  the  Atlantic  is 
by  some  supposed  to  account  for  the  indigo  blue  of  the  Gulf 
Stream.  M.  M.  Ballou  Equatorial  America  ch.  1,  p.  4. 

The  boomerang  must  have  been  discovered  .  .  .  by  some 
savage  throwing  a  crooked  branch,  and  by  his  observing  its  cu- 
rious and  unexpected  flight. 

Duke  of  Argyle  Primeval  Man  pt.  iv,  p.  152. 

She  has  been  made  singly  responsible  for  all  the  evil  enacted 
by  her  parliaments.  Agnes  Strickland  Queens  of  England, 
Mary  in  vol.  ii,  ch.  6,  p.  654. 

It  is  a  matter  of  the  simplest  demonstration,  that  no  man  can 
be  really  appreciated  but  by  his  equal  or  superior. 

RusKiN  Modern  Painters  vol.  i,  §  1,  pt.  i,  ch.  1,  p.  2. 

The  Ossianic  hero,  whose  dwelling  is  in  the  shadows  and  the 
mists,  is  haunted  by  spectres  which  are  at  once  his  terror,  his  de- 
light, and  his  inspiration.  Stephen  Lectures  onFrance  xviii,  p.  507. 

Oceanic  islands  are  inhabited  by  bats  and  seals,  but  by  no  ter- 
restrial mammals.     Darwin  Origin  of  Species  vol.  i,  ch.  7,  p.  281. 

The  absorption  of  moisture  by  sponges,  sugar,  salt,  etc. ,  are 
familiar  examples  of  capillary  attraction. 

Mary  Somerville  Comicction  of  Phys.  Sciences  §  14,  p.  110. 


by  Prepositions  80 

2.  With  the  perception,  feeling,  or  experience  of;  as,  the 
attempt  was  seen  by  all  to  be  a  failure ;  the  sorrow  was  felt  by 
rich  and  poor  alike. 

We  may  call  art  and  science  touched  by  emotion  religion,  if 
we  will.  M.  Arnold  Lit.  and  Dogma  ch.  1,  p.  46. 

And  every  moral  feeling  of  his  soul 
Strengthened  and  braced  by  breathing  in  content. 

Wordsworth  Excursion  bk.  i,  st.  13 

If  he  [God]  could  not  be  pained  by  anything,  .  .  .  had  no 

violable  sympathy,  he  would  be  anything  but  a  perfect  character. 

BusHNELL  Sermons  for  the  New  Life  ser.  xviii,  p.  347. 

Sentimentalism  has  been  already  defined  as  feeling,  partially 
enlightened  by  the  intellect,  and  yet  refusing  to  be  controlled 
by  it.  Porter  Science  and  Sentiment  ch.  1,  p.  34. 

For  by  the  word  spirit  we  mean  only  that  which  thinks,  wills, 
and  perceives.  Berkeley  Principles  of  Human  Knowledge  ed. 
by  Simon,  §  138,  p.  160. 

3,  Through  the  agency  or  operation  of,  as  an  indirect  or  im- 
personal cause:  in  some  connection  with,  as  of  enclosing,  sup- 
porting, etc. ;  having  or  taking  as  an  indication ;  using  as  or  being 
a  means  of  action,  information,  etc. ;  through ;  with ;  as,  the 
house  was  struck  by  lightning ;  by  this  decision  all  was  changed. 

Eccentricity  is  the  disturbance  of  the  relations  enjoined  by 
common  sense.  E.  P.  Whipple  Character  p.  37. 

There  stood  the  chaplain,  his  uncovered  brow 
Unmarked  by  earthly  passions. 

L.  H.  SiGOURNEY  Sailor's  Funeral  1.  37. 

Little  white  villages  surrounded  by  trees,  nestle  in  the  valleys 
or  roost  upon  the  lofty  perpendicular  sea-walls. 

Mark  Twain  Innocents  Abroad  ch.  32,  p.  339. 

Joshua  ...  is  always  known  by  his  spear,  or  javelin,  slung 
between  his  shoulders  or  stretched  out  in  his  hand. 

A.  P.  Stanley  Jewish  Church  vol.  i,  lect.  x,  p.  202. 

I  saw,  by  his  eye,  that  he  had  squinted  oftener  over  a  gun, 
than  through  a  needle  I  Cooper  Pilot  ch.  25,  p.  406. 


§1  Defined  and  Illustrated  by 

So  bleak  these  shores,  wind-swept  and  all  the  year 
Washed  by  the  wild  Atlantic's  restless  tide. 

Celia  Thaxter  Rock  Weeds  st.  1. 

The  climate  is  on  the  whole  so  tempered  by  the  Gulf  Stream 
that  even  this  part  of  Norway  is  pleasantly  habitable. 

Sarah  M.  H.  Davis  Norway  Nights  ch.  6,  p.  143. 

The  young  Edward  was  declared  King  by  acclamation,  and 
presented  in  that  capacity  to  the  approbation  of  the  populace. 

LiNGARD  England  vol.  iii,  ch.  7,  p.  270. 

4.  Through  the  instrumentality  of:  through  the  use  of,  as  a 
means  or  instrument ;  making  use  of;  taking  hold  of;  through 
the  action  or  influence  of;  as,  they  led  him  by  the  hand;  he 
mentioned  me  by  name. 

The  flame  is  fed  .  ,  .  by  the  wick,  which  draws  or  sucks  up 
the  oily  liquid  exactly  as  a  sponge  or  towel  draws  up  water. 

YouMANS  Hand-Book  Household  Science  ^  197,  p.  110. 

'Tis  by  many  reaches  that  the  leeward  vessel  gains  upon  the 
wind.  Cooper  Water-Witch  ch.  15,  p.  70. 

By  an  inevitable  chain  of  causes  and  effects.  Providence  pun- 
ishes national  sins  by  national  calamities. 

Bancroft  United  States  vol.  vi,  bk.  iii,  ch.  8,  p.  317. 

Take  Fate  by  the  throat  and  shake  a  living  out  of  her. 

Louisa  M.  Alcott  Journals,  Oct.,  1858  in  ch.  5,  p.  101. 

He  who  strives  to  cast  out  hatred  by  love,  may  fight  his  fight 
in  joy  and  confidence. 

J.  K.  Hosmer  Story  of  the  Jews  pt.  ii,  ch.  14,  p.  227. 

Words  leam'd  by  rote  a  parrot  may  rehearse. 

CowPER  Conversation  1.  7. 

We  are  bound  to  the  jury  trial  by  all  the  holiest  traditions  of 
our  past  history.  Pomeroy  Municipal  Laiv  §  6,  p.  6. 

The  blow  was  not  a  hard  one,  but  the  boy  was  so  taken  by 
surprise  that  he  started  back. 

T.  Hughes  Tom  Brown  at  Rugby  pt.  i,  ch.  8,  p.  181. 

5.  In  consequence  of;  as  a  result  of;  as,  victorious  by 
submission. 

6 


by  Prepositions  82 

No  one  need  expect  to  be  original  simply  by  being  absurd. 

Hugh  Miller  Testimony  of  the  Roclcs  led.  x,  p.  396. 

This  emeute  has  been  rendered  memorable  hy  the  destruction 
of  the  Bastille.  G.  N.  Wright  Louis  Philippe  ch.  1,  p.  33. 

Flagrant  evils  cure  themselves  by  being  flagrant. 

Newman  Apologia  pt.  v,  p.  203. 

The  Essay  on  Man  sins  chiefly  by  want  of  central  principle, 
and  by  want  therefore  of  all  coherency  amongst  the  separate 
thoughts.  De  Quincey  Essays  on  the  Poets,  Pope  p.  168. 

6.  Using  as  a  means  of  conveyance;  on;  upon;  over;  via; 
as,  to  send  freight  by  water ;  to  travel  by  rail. 

Couriers  and  relay  horses  by  land,  and  swift-sailing  pilot 
boats  by  sea,  were  flying  in  all  directions. 

Jefferson  in  Randall's  Thomas  Jefferson  vol.  i,  ch.  15,  p.  604. 

Marlow  is  only  an  hour  from  London  by  rail,  and  the  river 
from  Kingston  to  Oxford  swarms  with  cheap  trippers. 

W.  Graham  in  Nineteenth  Century  Nov.,  1893,  p.  762. 

IV.  Of  various  relations : 

1 .  Of  quantity,  number,  or  measurement,  to  the  extent,  num- 
ber»  or  amount  of ;  as,  the  insects  swarmed  by  thousands ;  reduce 
the  amount  by  one -half. 

The  time  required  for  light  to  reach  us  from  the  most  distant 
visible  stars  is  measured  by  thousands  of  years. 

S.  Newcomb  Popular  Astronomy  pt.  iv,  ch.  2,  p.  473. 

2.  Taking  as  a  standard  of  measurement ;  according  to ;  as, 
two  hundred  yards  by  actual  measurement ;  96°  in  the  shade  by 
the  Fahrenheit  thermometer. 

[In  noting  temperature  the  preposition  and  adjunct  are  com- 
monly omitted,  and  we  say  212°  Fahrenheit;  100°  Centigrade.] 

We  measure  their  [men's]  calibre  by  their  broadest  circle  of 
achievement.  E.  H.  Chapin  Lessons  of  Faith  p.  16. 

3.  Of  possession:  in  or  into  possession  of;  in  the  hands  of; 
near;  with;  about;  as,  he  came  honestly  by  it;  I  have  not  so 
much  money  by  me.     (Compare  I. ,  1. ) 


83  Defined  and  Illustrated  by 

Say  not  unto  thy  neighbor,  Go  and  come  again,  and  to-mor- 
row I  will  give,  when  thou  hast  it  Irg  thee.  Prov.  iii,  28. 

In  sooth,  I  know  not  why  I  am  so  sad. 
It  wearies  me :  you  say,  it  wearies  you ; 
But  how  I  caught  it,  found  it,  or  came  by  it, 
What  stuff't  is  made  of,  whereof  it  is  bom, 
I  am  to  learn. 
Shakespeare  The  Merchant  of  Venice  act  i,  so.  1, 1.  3. 

4.  Of  order,  arrangement,  etc. : 

(a)  In  connection  with ;  arranged  with  or  in ;  taken  or  con- 
sidered according  to;  alongside  of;  according  to;  as,  item  by 
item. 

There  are  thousands  of  Christians  who  have  never  examined 
the  evidences  of  the  Resurrection  piece  by  piece. 

Robertson  Sermons  second  series,  ser.  xx,  p.  424. 

By  the  common  law  of  England,  no  alien  whatever  can  hold 
land,  even  as  a  tenant.  Macaulay  Essays,  Social  Capacities  of 
Negroes  in  vol.  vi,  p.  366,  app. 

Moving  by  the  right  .  .  .  would  have  brought  him  [General 
Grant]  into  immediate  collision  with  the  enemy  on  a  terrain 
more  suitable  for  field  operations. 

NicoLAY  and  Hay  Abraham  Lincoln  vol.  viii,  ch.  14,  p.  349. 

(b)  Multiplied  into ;  in  connection  or  measurement  with;  as, 
seven  feei  by  six. 

It  [St.  Croix]  lies  65  miles  E.  S.  E.  of  Porto  Rico  and  is  about 
20  miles  long  from  E.  to  W.  by  about  5  miles  broad. 

Lippincotfs  Gazetteer,  1903  p.  1991. 

In  nautical  use:  one  point  toward:  used  in  ** boxing  the  com- 
pass " ;  as,  west  by  north ;  northwest  by  west. 

Ihe  Ranger  was  under  way  ...  as  her  log  says,  'going  free, 
course  east  by  south  half  east.  .  .  . ' 

Augustus  C.  Buell  Paul  Jones  vol.  i,  p.  82. 

5.  Denoting  tha  direction  of  an  action  toward  its  object : 
with  reference  to  ;  as  regards  ;  as  affecting  ;  respecting  ;  con- 
cerning ;  as,  to  do  well  by  one's  friends  or  kindred. 


? 


by  Prepositions  84 

Then  Philip  put  the  boy  and  girl  to  school, 
And  bought  them  needful  books,  and  every  way. 
Like  one  who  does  his  duty  hy  his  own. 
Made  himself  theirs. 

Tennyson  Enoch  Arden  1.  330. 

6.  Denoting  adhesion,  as  an  extension  of  the  local  meaning 
in  I.,l:  adhering  to;  remaining  with ;  acting  in  defense  of;  ta- 
king the  consequences  of ;  as,  I  will  stand  hy  you ;  I  stand  hy  the 
statement ;  I  will  abide  hy  the  decision. 

[Ahide  is  also  used  transitively,  without  a  preposition ;  as,  I 
will  ahide  the  result.] 

I  am  ready  to  produce  my  books,  and  to  abide  hy  them,  in 
any  court  of  Justice  in  the  world. 

Maria  Edgeworth  Forester,  The  Bank -Notes  p.  104. 

Bitter  taunts  on  those  who,  having  stood  hy  the  King  in  the 
hour  of  danger,  now  advised  him  to  deal  mercifully  and  gener- 
ously hy  his  vanquished  enemies,  were  publicly  recited  on  the 
stage.  Macaulay  England  vol.  i,  ch.  3,  p.  326. 

7,  As  invoking  or  calling  to  witness ;  in  the  name,  presence, 
or  view  of ;  as,  to  swear  hy  all  that  is  sacred. 

Swear  not  at  all ;  neither  hy  heaven,  for  it  is  God's  throne ; 
nor  hy  the  earth,  for  it  is  his  footstool.  Matt,  v  34. 

Lars  Porsena  of  Clusium, 

By  the  Nine  Gods  he  swore 
That  the  great  house  of  Tarquin 
Should  suffer  wrong  no  more. 
By  the  Nine  Gods  he  swore  it, 
And  named  a  trysting-day. 
Macaulay  Lays  of  Ancient  Rome,  Horatius  st.  1. 

Distinctions 
See  Distinctions  under  beside  ;  with. 

Verbs  and  Other  Antecedents 
Call  (in  the  phrase  call  hy  name) ,  see,  perceive,  know,  under-    I 
stand,  judge,  measure,  seem,  take,  are  followed  by  hy  of  the 


85  Defined  and  Illustrated  by 

determining  object;  as,  I  saw  by  his  glance  that  he  was  a  rogue; 
I  jndge  by  his  dress  that  he  is  a  man  of  means  ;  etc.  Sur- 
rounded is  commonly  followed  by  by ;  as,  surrounded  by  moun- 
tains, by  enemies,  etc.  Attended  may  take  either  by  or  with ; 
as,  he  was  attended  by  a  numerous  retinue ;  the  attempt  will  be 
attended  with  danger.     Compare  with. 

Errors 

Very  little  knowledge  of  their  nature  is  acquired  by  the  spell- 
ing-book. Lindley  Murray  English  Grammar  p.  21. 

Nouns  are  often  formed  by  participles. 

Lindley  Murray  An  English  Grammar  vol.  ii,  p.  290. 

By  in  such  connection  denotes  agency,  which  is  not  here  in-  fU7>t^^ 
tended.  It  is  not  the  participles  that  form  the  nouns,  nor  the  f^  ^»*c< 
spelling-book  that  acquires  the  knowledge.  These  are  rather  ^jj/  *' a£i 
the  sources  than  the  agents,  and  from  should  be  used  instead  oi  £^ 

by  in  both  cases.  c^^t^  C 


VIII— Prepositions  Defined  and  Illustrated 

CONCERNIIVO,  COI^SIDERIIVO 

For  the  meaning  and  use  of  these  words  see  Participial 
Prepositions. 

DESPITE 

Despite,  from  the  noun  despite,  signifies  in  despite  of;  in  spite 
of;  in  defiance  of;  notwithstanding. 

Despite  the  discouragement  received,  ...  he  (Commodore 
Daniel  Ammen)  ordered  one  or  more  of  the  Thompson  machines. 

Hamersly  Nq,val  Encycl,  Deep  Sea. 

Down  (archaic  and  poetic  adown)  is  derived  from  the  Anglo- 
Saxon  adun,  of 'dune,  from  of,  off,  plus  dUn,  hill. 

I.  Of  place  :  in  a  descending  direction  along,  upon,  or  in  ; 
from  a  higher  to  or  toward  a  lower  level,  part,  or  place  of  or  in  ; 
from  top  to  bottom  of;  along  the  course  or  current  of;  along,  in 
a  descending  direction,  or  in  a  direction  thought  of  as  descend- 
ing; as,  down  a  shaft;  to  fall  down  stairs;  to  run  down  the  hill; 
to  sail  down  the  river,  or  down  stream ;  to  glance  down  the  page. 

And  down  the  long  beam  stole  the  Holy  Grail, 
Rose-red,  with  beatings  in  it,  as  if  alive. 

Tennyson  The  Holy  Grail  st.  10. 

And  sparkle  out  among  the  fern, 
To  bicker  down  a  valley. 

Tennyson  The  Brook  st.  2. 

The  shadows  of  the  convent-towers 
Slant  down  the  snowy  sward. 

Tennyson  St  Agnes  st.  1. 

(86) 


87  Prepositions  Defined  and  Illustrated    during 

Hurrah ! — hurrah ! — the  west-wind 
Comes  freshening  down  the  bay. 

Whittier  The  Fishermen  st.  10. 

We  may  see  a  huge  boulder  or  two  poised  on  the  end  of  the 
glacier,  and,  if  fortunate,  also  see  the  boulder  .  .  .  plunging 
violently  down  the  slope.     Tyndall  Forms  of  Water  %  13,  p.  44. 

Their  long  column  might  be  seen  winding  down  the  breast  of 
the  mountain.  Headley  Miscellanies  vol.  ii,  ch.  4,  p.  33. 

And,  hurrying  down  the  sphery  way, 
Night  flies,  and  sweeps  her  shadows  from  the  paths  of  day. 
Jean  Ingelow  Song  for  Night  of  Christ's  Resurrection  st.  23. 

II.  Of  time:  from  an  earlier  to  a  later  period  of;  onward  in 
duration ;  as,  the  story  has  come  down  the  ages. 

Dovm  the  dark  future,  through  long  generations, 
The  echoing  sounds  grow  fainter  and  then  cease. 

Longfellow  Arsenal  at  Springfield  st.  11. 

III.  Figuratively,  of  various  relations :  along  in  a  direction 
thought  of  as  descending ;  as,  down  the  wind. 

Down  the  wind,  in  the  same  direction  the  wind  is  blowing. 

B.AMY.RSJ^Y  Naval  Encycl,  Wind. 

[The  preposition  and  its  object  may  be  used  as  an  adverb  or 
attributive  phrase;  as,  in  down-river,  down-stream,  down-town, 
etc.       *  Murray's  New  English  Dictionary.'] 

DCRIIVO 

During,  originally  the  present  participle  of  the  obsolete  verb 
dure  =  endure,  has  acquired  such  independent  prepositional 
force  that  it  is  never  thought  of  with  reference  to  its  verb. 
Compare  Participial  Prepositions. 

Of  time,  exclusively:  in  or  within  the  time  of;  at  some  period 
in;  throughout  the  course,  action,  continuance,  or  existence  of; 
as,  I  awoke  repeatedly  during  the  night ;  during  the  siege  of 
Troy. 

Thus  hath  he  lost  sixpence  a  day  during  his  life. 
Shakespeare  A  Midsummer-Nights  Dream  act  iv,  sc.  2,  1.  19. 


ere 


Prepositions  88 


Thousands  of  Britons,  in  times  of  famine,  during  the  first  cen- 
tury after  the  Norman  Conquest,  sold  themselves  into  thraldom. 

C.  L.  Brace  Gesta  Christi  ch.  21,  p.  241. 

In  America,  during  the  Eocene,  palms,  and  figs,  and  ever- 
greens in  Dakota,  show  a  temperature  there  about  that  of  Florida 
now.        Jos.  Le  Conte  Compend  of  Geology  pt.  iii,  ch.  5,  p.  348. 

It  was  during  his  [Luther's]  enforced  seclusion  in  Wartburg, 
.  .  .  that  Bartholomew  Bernhardi,  pastor  of  Kammerich,  .  .  . 
solved  the  matter  in  the  most  practical  way  by  obtaining  the 
consent  of  his  parish  and  celebrating  his  nuptials  with  all  due 
solemnity.  H.  C.  Lea  Sacerdotal  Celibacy  ch.  25,  p.  411. 

Ere  is  the  Anglo-Saxon  cer,  before,  and  is  used  as  a  strict 
synonym  of  before,  as  regards  time  or  preference,  signifying 
earlier  or  sooner  than ;  rather  than. 

True  prayers, 
That  shall  be  up  at  heaven  and  enter  there 
Ere  sunrise. 
Shakespeare  Measure  for  Measure  act.  ii,  sc.  2,  1.  126. 

I'll  to  my  book, 
For  yet  ere  supper-time  must  I  perform 
Much  business  appertaining. 

Shakespeare  Tempest  act.  iii,  sc.  1, 1.  93. 

EXCEPT,  EXCEPTING 

Except  is  derived  from  the  Latin  exceptu^,  the  past  participle 
of  excipiOy  from  ex,  out,  plus  capio,  take.  Excepting  is  strictly 
the  present  participle  of  the  verb  except,  and  is  used  inter- 
changeably with  the  briefer  form.  Compare  Participial  Prep- 
ositions. 

With  the  exception  or  exclusion  of;  leaving  out;  not  consid- 
ering or  taking  account  of ;  omitting;  apart  from;  aside  from; 
save;  saving;  but;  without. 

Except  May,  there  is  no  month  like  October  for  roses. 

Christian  Reid  Question  of  Honor  bk.  i,  ch.  10,  p.  107. 


§9  Defined  and  Illustrated  for 

FOR 

For  is  derived  from  the  Anglo-Saxon  for,  fore,  before,  for. 

[The  import  of  a  position  or  movement  tnmed  to  the  front  of 
an  object  belongs  originally  to  the  preposition /or,  similarly  to 
the  Latin  pro  allied  to  proe.  .  .  .  The  idea  of  stepping  before 
anything  yields  that  of  representation,  when  one  object  seems 
to  take  the  place  of  the  other,  and  may  pass  as  its  representative, 
substitute,  or  equivalent.  The  person  or  thing  instead  of  which 
another  appears,  with  which  it  exchanges  its  activity  or  quality, 
the  object  for  which  another  is  exchanged,  may  be  introduced 
hy  for.  Maetzner  English  Grammar  vol.  ii,  p.  427.] 

I.  Of  place,  denoting  extent,  measurement,  etc.  (compare 
m.,  9) :  to  the  extent  of;  for  the  space  of;  as,  the  ground  is  level 
for  several  miles. 

The  chips  of  the  mountain  strew  the  cone  for  eight  hundred 
feet  below.  Winchell  Walks  and  Talks  ch.  19,  p.  108. 

II.  Of  time: 

].  Denoting  extent  or  duration  (compare  HI.,  9) :  to  the  ex- 
tent of;  throughout  the  period  of;  till  the  end  of;  throughout; 
as,  it  is  good  for  the  next  ten  years ;  it  will  do  for  the  present. 

The  clergy,  for  a  time,  made  war  on  schism  with  so  much 
vigor  that  they  had  little  leisure  to  make  war  on  vice. 

Macaulay  England  vol.  i,  ch.  2,  p.  141. 

A  cook  they  haden  with  them  for  the  nones. 
To  boil  the  chickens  and  the  marrow  bones. 

Chaucer  C.  T.,  Prologue  1.  382. 

A  serving  man  on  Saturdays    To  cater  for  the  week. 

Browning  Ring  and  Book  pt.  iv,  1.  361. 

For  several  years,  whenever  a  slave  brought  an  action  at  law 
for  his  liberty,  Mr.  Clay  volunteered  as  his  advocate. 

Epes  Sargent  Henry  Clay  vol.  i,  ch.  1,  p.  21. 

On  both  sides  of  the  east  Temple  gate,  stalls  had  for  genera- 
tions been  permitted  for  changing  foreign  money. 

Geikie  Life  of  Christ  vol.  i,  ch.  30,  p.  496. 


for  Prepositions  90 

The  wonderful  elaboration,  carried  on  for  twenty  years,  .  .  . 
has  given  to  the  History  of  Herodotus  its  surpassing  and  never- 
failing  charm.  Rawlinson  Herodotus  vol.  i,  ch.  1,  p.  17. 

2.  On  the  occasion  of  ;  with  reference  to,  as  an  occasion,  ap- 
pointment, or  the  like ;  as,  be  ready  for  to-morrow. 

Remember  that  you  are  booked  for  the  10th  of  September. 
Macaulay  in  Trevelyan's  T.  B.  Macaulay  vol.  ii,  p.  271. 

In  the  first  Parliament  of  James  the  House  of  Commons  re- 
fused for  the  first  time  to  transact  business  on  a  Sunday. 

Green  English  People  vol.  iii,  bk.  vii,  ch.  1,  p.  15. 

III.  Of  various  relations : 

1.  Of  cause,  reason,  or  occasion:  because  of;  by  reason  of; 
on  account  of;  as,  he  was  respected /or  his  virtues;  he  cried 
out  for  fear. 

Here  he  prostrated  himself,  and  cried  out,  'Hail,  sacred 
Rome,  thrice  sacred  for  the  blood  of  the  martyrs  shed  here.* 

W..W.  Story  in  Scribner's  Magazine  Oct.,  1891,  p.  417. 

It  is  .  .  .  necessary  that  every  officer  renaain  individually 
answerable  for  his  acts.       F.  Lieber  Civil  Liberty  ch.  5,  p.  159. 

Likewise  to  them  are  Poets  much  beholden 
For  secret  favors  in  the  midnight  glooms. 

Hood  Plea  of  Midsummer  Fairies  st.  112. 

2,  Of  the  purpose,  object,  or  aim  of  an  action  :  with  a  view 
to;  in  order  to  ejffect,  reach,  benefit,  please,  etc. : 

(a)  As  a  matter  of  use  or  enjoyment:  with  the  design  of; 
appropriate  to  ;  as,  a  place  for  study ;  a  time  for  worship  ;  a 
home  for  the  aged. 

Every  work  of  art  should  contain  within  itself  all  that  is 
requisite  for  its  own  comprehension.  Poe  Works,  Critical  Es- 
says, Longfellow's  Ballads  in  vol.  iii,  p.  369. 

After  all,  the  austere  virtues — the  virtues  of  Emerson,  Haw- 
thorne, Whittier — are  the  best  soil  for  genius. 

T.  W.  HiGGiNSON  Studies  of  American  Authors,  Poe  p.  20. 

Win  from  our  public  cares  a  day  for  joy. 

SouTHEY  Joan  of  Arc  bk.  iii,  st.  4 


91  Defined  and  Illustrated  for 

That  inexorable  law  of  human  souls,  that  we  prepare  our- 
selves for  sudden  deeds  by  the  reiterated  choice  of  good  or  evil 
that  gradually  determines  character. 

George  Eliot  Romola  ch.  23,  p.  203. 

A  good  quarrel  was  a  sort  of  moral  whetstone,  always  on 
hand  for  the  sharpening  of  their  wits. 

Harriet  B.  Stowe  Poganuc  People  ch.  14,  p.  152. 

Men  may  choose  to  forget  the  ends  for  which  their  *  talents ' 
were  given  them  ;  .  .  .  they  may  practically  deny  that  they 
were  given  at  all ;  yet  in  this  word  .  .  .  abides  a  continual  me- 
mento that  they  were  so  given,  .  .  .  and  that  each  man  shall 
have  to  render  an  account  of  their  use. 

Trench  On  the  Study  of  Words  lect.  iii,  p.  93. 

(6)  As  something  to  be  reached  or  attained,  or  toward  which 
one's  inclinations  or  desires  go  out :  in  order  to  reach  or  bring 
about ;  seeking  ;  reaching  after  ;  tending  toward  ;  toward  ;  as, 
waiting  for  the  mail ;  planning  for  the  future  ;  eagerness  for 
praise  ;  a  passion  for  jewelry ;  a  taste  for  music. 

We  look  in  vain  in  the  Old  Testament  for  the  radiant  and 
overflowing  benignity  of  the  New. 

John  Young  Christ  of  History  bk.  ii,  pt.  v,  p.  159. 

To  account  for  the  observed  motions  of  the  moon  and  planets, 
Ptolemy  adopted  and  extended  the  theory  of  epicycles. 

R.  RouTLEDGE  Popular  Hist.  Science  ch.  2,  p.  48. 

A  man  bids  fairer  for  greatness  of  soul,  who  is  the  descend- 
ant of  worthy  ancestors,  and  has  good  blood  in  his  veins. 

Addison  in  The  Guardian  Aug.  18,  1713. 

Our  thirst  for  applause,  ...  if  the  last  infirmity  of  noble 
minds,  is  also  the  first  infirmity  of  weak  ones. 

RusKiN  Sesame  and  Lilies  lect.  i,  p.  8. 

Still  within  my  heart  I  bear    Love  for  all  things  good  and  fair. 
Whittier  Andreiv  Eykman's  Prayer  st.  7, 

For  who,  if  the  rose  bloomed  forever,  so  greatly  would  care  for 
the  rose  ?  Owen  Meredith  Apple  of  Life  st.  9. 

Locke  had  no  taste  for  fiction. 

Leigh  Hunt  Men,  Women,  and  Books  vol  i,  ch.  1,  p.  7. 


for  Prepositions  92 

He  called  for  his  gun,  which  he  brandished  in  a  manner  of 
no  hopeful  auspice  for  the  Howadji. 

G.^W.  Curtis  Howadji  in  Syria  pt.  i,  eh.  16,  p.  111. 

(c)  As  referring  to  a  person  whose  welfare  or  enjoyment  is 
desired,  or  to  an  approved  object  or  a  wished-for  event:  in  favor 
of:  opposed  to  against;  as,  he  voted  for  Abraham  Lincoln;  my 
voice  is  for  war. 

The  arbiter  of  others'  fate,    A  suppliant  for  his  own ! 

Byron  Ode  to  Napoleon  st.  5. 

A  suppliant /or  a  father's  life,    I  crave  an  audience  of  the  King. 

Scott  Lady  of  the  Lake  can.  6,  st.  9. 

They  [the  Utopians]  give  their  voices  secretly,  so  that  it  is 
not  knovsm  for  whom  every  one  gives  his  suffrage. 

T.  More  Utopia  [trans.]  bk.  ii,  p.  86. 

The  resolutions  for  the  annexation  of  Texas  passed  both 
branches  of  Congress.    H.  C.  Lodge  Daniel  Webster  ch.  8,  p.  263. 

Thrice  had  that  name  been  sent  to  the  President  with  the 
recommendation  of  his  department  commander  for  brevets  for 
conspicuous  and  gallant  conduct. 

Chas.  King  Two  Soldiers  ch.  1,  p,  11. 

That  is  an  argument,  not  for  Establishment,  but  for  volun- 
taryism. George  Trevelyan  in  Hansard's  Parliamentary  De- 
bates, Feb,  20y  1891  p.  1310. 

We'll  tak  a  cup  o'  kindness  yet.    For  auld  lang  syne. 

Burns  Auld  Lang  Syne  cho. 

Ji.  Of  possession  or  destination :  belonging  to ;  to  be  ^ven  or 
assigned  to;  to  be  held  or  used  by;  in  the  province  or  wcope  of; 
to  designate ;  as,  this  package  is  for  you ;  glory  is  no\  for  cow- 
ards ;  success  is  for  the  industrious. 

There  is  no  true  strength  for  any  man  save  in  inward  recti- 
tude,— in  right  relations  between  his  own  soul  and  God. 

E.  H.  Chapin  Lessons  of  Faith  ser.  xi,  p.  194. 

To  me,  it  seems  that  for  some  people  all  life  is  a  lie,  though 
they  never  actually  utter  a  falsehood. 

Frances  P.  Cobbe  Duties  of  Women  lect.  ii,  p.  71. 


951  Defined  and  Illustrated  for 

Nay,  'tis  for  thee  to  watch  God's  house,  and  ward  the  images, 
And  let  men  deal  with  peace  and  war ;  for  they  were  born  for 
these.  Morris  ^neids  of  Virgil  bk.  vii,  1.  4455. 

Again  for  him  the  moonlight  shone 
On  Norman  cap  and  bodiced  zone. 

Whittier  Snow-Bound  st.  11. 

It  is  well  for  the  world  that  in  most  of  us.  by  the  age  of  thirty, 
the  character  has  set  like  plaster,  and  will  never  soften  again. 
W.  James  Prin.  of  Psychol,  vol.  i,  ch.  4,  p.  121. 

His  habit  was  very  proper  for  a  scaramouch,  or  merry- an 
drew,  being  a  dirty  calico,  with  hanging-sleeves,  tassel^  and 
cuts  and  slashes  almost  on  every  side. 

De  Foe  Robinson  Crusoe  %  43,  p.  576. 

4,  In  place  of ;  instead  of ;  as  the  equivalent  of ;  as  an  offset 
to ;  in  exchange  for ;  as,  to  buy  (or  sell)  an  article  for  a  dollar ; 
here  is  the  money  to  pay  for  it ;  to  give  blow  for  blow. 

I  would  have  paid  her  kiss  for  kiss    With  usury  thereto. 

Tennyson  The  Talking  Oak  st.  49. 

For  surely  a  woman's  affection 
Is  not  a  thing  to  be  asked  for,  and  had  for  only  the  asking. 
Longfellow  Miles  Standish  pt.  iii,  st.  6. 

[The  evil  of  wealth]  springs  from  that  criminal  haste  which 
substitutes  adroitness  for  industry  and  trick  for  toil. 

H.  W.  Beecher  Lectures  to  Young  Men  lect.  iii,  p.  88. 

Thy  purpose  hath  atoned  for  thy  hasty  rashness. 

Scott  Ivannoe  ch.  34,  p.  287. 

Shady  groves  and  cooling  grots  are  abandoned  for  drawing 
rooms  at  ninety-six,  and  half-a-score  sickly  orange-trees  tubbed 
on  the  top  of  a  staircase. 

Hook  Humorous  Works,  Fashionable  Parties  p.  322 

And  yet,  for  a  word  spoken  with  kindness,  I  would  have  re- 
signed the  peacock's  feather  in  my  cap  as  the  merest  of  baubles. 
De  Quincey  Ojnum-Eater,  Suspiria  pt.  ii,  p.  268. 

A  thousand  men  to-day  care  whether  the  state  is  pure,  for 
one  who  cared  in  the  last  century. 

Phillips  Brooks  Candle  of  the  Lord  ser.  ix,  p.  156. 


for 


Prepositions  94 


5.  In  the  character  of ;  as  being,  seeming,  or  supposed  to  be ; 
aff  representing ;  as,  he  was  left  for  dead  on  the  field ;  he  was 
mistaken  for  a  criminal ;  I  take  you  for  an  honest  man. 

Ignorance  makes  many  men  mistake  mere  transcripts  for 
originals.        Fuller  Ch.  Hist.  Britain  vol.  i,  bk.  iii,  §  6,  p.  374. 

With  a  buffalo  spread  on  the  grass,  and  a  blanket  for  our 
covering,  our  bed  was  soon  made. 

Thoreau  Week  on  the  Concord,  Sunday  p.  119. 

Taking  art /or  their  guide,  instead  of  nature,  and  substituting 
the  love  of  excelling  for  the  love  of  excellence,  they  [authors]  of 
course  became  artificial. 

H.  N.  Hudson  Lect.  on  Shakespeare  vol.  i,  lect.  iii,  p.  104. 

6.  With  reference  or  regard  to ;  in  relation  to ;  in  proportion 
to ;  as,  for  this  time  it  does  not  matter ;  for  myself,  I  do  not 
care ;  he  is  small  for  his  age. 

And  fearful  for  his  light  caique, 

He  shuns  the  near  but  doubtful  creek. 

Byron  Giaour  st.  6. 

Mr.  Howard's  estimate  [of  damage],  as  given  in  the  entomol- 
ogist's report  for  1887,  for  the  nine  States  infested  by  the  chinch 
bug  in  that  year,  was  $60,000,000.      Insect  Life  Oct.,  1891,  p.  12. 

The  rules  of  prudence  in  general,  like  the  laws  of  the  stone 
tables,  are  for  the  most  part  prohibitive. 

Coleridge  Works,  Aids  to  Reflection  in  vol.  i,  p.  126. 

7.  In  spite  of ;  without  regard  to ;  despite ;  notwithstanding : 
often  in  connection  with  all ;  as,  I  hold  my  opinion  for  all  that. 

The  owl,  for  all  his  feathers,  was  a-cold. 

Keats  The  Eve  of  St.  Agnes  st.  1. 

The  rank  is  but  the  guinea's  stamp, 
The  man's  the  gowd  for  a'  that. 

Burns  For  A'  That  and  A'  That. 

8.  In  honor  of ;  by  the  name  of ;  after ;  as,  the  child  was 
named  for  his  grandfather.    Compare  after. 


95  Defined  and  Illustrated  for 

A  cup  to  the  dead  already, — 
Hurrah  for  the  next  that  dies  I 

Bartholomew  Dowling  Revelry  in  India, 

9,  To  the  extent  or  number  of;  to  the  amount  of;  as,  he  is 
liable  for  a  large  amount ;  he  failed  for  half  a  million. 

On  Saturday  last  a  judgment  was  entered  against 


for  $9,179.  The  New  York  Times  Oct.  7, 1903. 

Verbs  and  Other  Antecedents 

Verbs  followed  by  for  are  too  numerous  to  be  fully  specified, 
but  include  those  that  imply  a  reaching  or  tending  toward  an 
object  or  seeking  it  as  an  end,  as  ask,  beg,  hope,  labor,  long, 
plan,  pray,  reach,  strive,  struggle,  toil,  wish,  work,  etc. ;  also 
verbs  denoting  action  that  may  be  in  behalf  of  or  for  the  sake 
of  some  person  or  object ;  as,  to  act,  argue,  care,  plan,  speak, 
stand  {stand  up),  think,  etc.  Nouns  and  adjectives  allied  to 
such  verbs  or  to  the  verbal  notions  they  imply  are  commonly 
followed  by  for;  as,  labor  for  others'  good ;  thoughtful  for  our 
comfort.  In  the  United  States  a  person  is  said  to  subscribe  to 
something  that  he  supports,  but  for  something  that  he  is  to 
receive  or  obtain;  he  subscribes  to  a  creed,  for  a  magazine. 
One  may  send  in  a  subscription  either  to  or  for  a  periodical. 
A  person  corresponds  for  a  newspaper,  unth  a  friend ;  one  thing 
corresponds  to  or  with  another. 

Distinctions 

During — for — in — through — throughout — within :  As  applied 
to  time,  during,  for,  through,  and  throughout  all  contemplate 
extent  of  duration ;  as,  he  will  suffer  during,  through,  or  through- 
out his  whole  life ;  it  will  last  for  a  lifetime ;  imprisonment  for 
life.  By  change  of  phrase,  we  might  say  "imprisonment  during 
life,"  and  this  form  is  sometimes  used;  but  in  any  often-recur- 
ring phrase  the  tendency  is  to  the  shorter  word,  and  for  is  most 
familiar  in  such  connection.  But  for  may  also  signify  on  the 
occasion  of;  as,  be  ready  for  to-morrow,  that  is,  to  meet  the 


from  Prepositions  96 

demands  of  to-morrow.  (Compare  Distinctions  under  against.  ) 
This  meaning  is  shared  by  none  of  the  other  words  here  com- 
pared. In  and  within  may  refer  only  to  some  included  point  or 
points  of  a  specified  duration ;  as,  I  have  seen  him  two  or  three 
times  in  (or  within)  the  past  year.  Here  during  might  also  be 
used,  but  not  for,  through,  or  throughout.  But  a  negative  may 
make  a  statement  with  in  or  icithin  universal,  covering  not  only 
the  specified  points,  but  the  whole  duration  including  them,  so 
that  with  a  negative  for  may  be  used  in  place  of  in  or  within ; 
as,  **I  have  not  seen  him  in  [or  withiii]  a  year"  may  be  changed 
to  "  I  have  not  seen  him /or  a  year,"  and  become  a  stronger  state- 
ment by  the  change,  since  for  is  comprehensive  as  in  is  inclusive. 
Against — by — for:    See  Distinctions  under  against. 

FROm 

From  represents  the  Anglo-Saxon  from,  fram,  used  in  the 
same  sense,  denoting  primarily  removal  or  separation  in  space 
or  time,  and  then  cause,  reason,  or  instrumentality.  [How  ele- 
mentary and  fundamental  this  particle  is  appears  from  the  ex- 
ceeding difficulty  of  framing  a  definition  of  it,  without  using 
the  word  itself  in  its  own  definition.] 

I.  Of  place  or  space :  having  as  a  starting-point  of  motion, 
actual  or  implied ;  out  of ;  starting  at ;  leaving  behind :  opposed 
to  into,  to,  or  unto ;  as,  he  sailed  from  New  York  to  Liverpool ; 
the  student  went  froin  home  to  college ;  the  town  is  five  miles 
from  the  city ;  the  view  from  the  summit  is  fine ;  keep  away 
from  the  machinery. 

From  all  his  deep  the  bellowing  river  roars. 

Homer  Iliad  tr.  by  Pope,  bk.  xxi,  1.  358. 

At  intervals  some  bird  from  out  the  brakes 
Starts  into  voice  a  moment,  then  is  still. 

Byron  Childe  Harold  can.  3,  st.  87. 

He  heard  the  Angelus  from  convent  towers. 

Longfellow  Wayside  Inn,  King  Robert  st.  14. 


p 


97  Defined  and  Illustrated  from 

It  was  Autumn,  and  incessant 
Piped  the  quails  from  shocks  and  sheaves. 

Longfellow  Pegasus  in  Pound  st.  2. 

From  Paradise  first,  if  I  shall  not  lie, 
Was  man  out  chased  for  his  gluttony. 

Chaucer  C.  T.,  The  Sompnour's  Tale  1.  208. 

I  ate  a  little  chocolate  from  my  supply,  well  knowing  the 
miraculous  sustaining  powers  of  the  simple  little  block. 

F.  Marion  Crawford  Mr.  Isaacs  ch.  12,  p.  258. 

The  spectacle  of  the  host  of  Israel,  even  though  seen  only 
from  its  utmost  skirts,  is  too  much  for  .  .  .  Balaam. 

A.  P.  Stanley  The  Jewish  Church  pt.  i,  lect.  viii,  p.  217. 

From  city  to  city,  from  province  to  province,  from  isle  to  isle, 

of  Hellas,  her  [Helen's]  fame  was  sung,  her  beauty  was  extolled. 

S.  a.  W.  Benjamin  Troy  pt.  i,  ch.  2,  p.  13. 

II.  Of  time :  having  as  a  starting-point  of  duration ;  noting 
the  beginning  of  a  period  or  of  some  series  regarded  as  occupying 
time;  beginning  with;  after:  often  with  till  or  to  as  correlative; 
as,  from  birth  till  death ;  from  morning  to  night ;  the  cathedral 
dates  from  the  fifteenth  century. 

The  king  [Alfred]  .  .  .  from  his  early  years  had  been  ani- 
mated with  the  most  ardent  passion  for  knowledge. 

LiNGARD  England  vol.  i,  ch.  4,  p.  169. 

From  mom  to  noon  he  fell,  from  noon  to  dewy  eve, 
A  summer's  day.         Milton  Paradise  Lost  bk.  i,  1.  743. 

Far  in  a  wild,  unknown  to  public  view, 
From  youth  to  age  a  reverend  hermit  grew. 

Pabnell  The  Berniit  1. 1. 

And  so  we  lay  from  ebb-tide,  tiU  the  flow 
Rose  high  enough  to  drive  us  from  the  reef. 

Jean  Ingelow  Brothers,  and  aSermon^t.  6. 

All  manner  of  outcries  assailed  the  speaker,  from  his  rising  till 
he  surceased.      A.  C.  CoxE  Impressions  of  England  ch.  31,  p.  276. 


from  Prepositions  9§ 

In  this  chair,  from  one  year's  end  to  another,  sat  that  prodig- 
ious book-worm,  Cotton  Mather,  sometimes  devouring  a  great 
book,  and  sometimes  scribbling  one  as  big. 

Hawthorne  Grandfather's  Chair  pt.  ii,  ch.  4,  p.  107. 

Tradition,  it  is  said,  occasionally  hands  down  the  practical 
arts  with  more  precision  and  fidelity  than  they  can  be  transmit- 
ted by  books,  from  <^eneration  to  generation.  Webster  in  Private 
Correspondence,  Pec.  ^9, 1850  in  vol.  ii,  p.  408. 

III.  Of  various  relations : 

1.  Having  as  a  stat: ting-point  of  change,  variation,  separa- 
tion, or  diversity : 

(a)  In  variant  or  adverse  relation  to ;  starting  or  beginning 
at  or  with ;  as,  free  from  f Sitxlt ;  the  supply  is  far  from  adequate : 
often  followed  by  to ;  as,  frGr.%  grave  to  gay. 

Withdrawal  of  custom  frotii  a  tradesman  .  .  .  decreases  his 
welfare,  and  perhaps  injures  his  belongings. 

Spencer  Data  of  Ethics  ch.  15,  p.  560. 

From  all  the  gay  and  tinsel  vanities  of  the  world  their  [the 
Quakers']  discipline  has  preserved  them. 

Coleridge  TFbrfcs,  Xa2/ >S^er*mon  in  vol.  vi,  p.  197. 

Queen  Mary  saw  the  minstrel's  pain. 
And  bade  /rom  bootless  grieC  refrain. 

Hogg  Quein's  Wake  pt.  iii,  1.  26. 

Woolen  garments  .  .  .  always  feel  warm  and  free /rom  chill. 

J.  J.  Pope  Numbed*  One  talk  v,  p.  116. 

(b)  Noting  unlikeness,  distinction,  de  vial  von,  or  difference; 
as,  the  idea  of  right  is  quite  distinct /rom  the  fc^or.  of  expediency. 

We  cannot  disassociate  the  idea  cf  Causation  fA^mi  the  idea  of 
Force  or  Energy.    Duke  of  Argyll  Unity  ofNattii^c  ch.  4,  p.  138. 

The  basis  of  morals  is  a  distinct  question  frc^,%  tbe  basis  of 
theories  of  morals.      Lecky  Hist.  Eur.  M<}rals  vol.  i,  ch.  1,  p.  74. 

But 'some  little  deviation  froyn  the  precise  lino  of  rectitude 
might  have  been  winked  at  in  so  tortuous  and  stigm^^^c  a 
frame.  Charles  and  Mary  Lamb  Mrs.  LevC^sdUi^c  School,  Sir 
Jeffery  Dunstan  p.  291. 


99  Defined  and  Illustrated  from 

It  is  within  and  quite  distinct  from  the  corona,  and  is  usually 
called  the  'chromosphere/  being  a  sort  of  sphere  of  colored  fire 
surrounding  the  sun.  Langley  New  Astronomy  p.  61. 

Science  is  as  far  removed /rom  brute  force  as  this  sword /ro?w 
a  crowbar.  Bulwer-Lytton  Leila  bk.  ii,  ch.  1,  p.  33. 

[Note. — The  adjective  different  is  correctly  followed  by 
from.  Different  to  has  a  certain  use  in  England,  and  is  found 
even  in  Thackeray,  but  is  regarded  as  colloquial  and  avoided  by 
careful  writers.  The  verb  differ  is  followed  either  by  from  or 
h J  with,  from  being  used  with  reference  to  qualities,  with  with 
reference  to  views,  opinions,  etc. ;  an  apple  differs  from  a  pear ; 
a  man  differs  from  another  in  stature,  complexion,  etc. ;  he  dif- 
fers with  another  in  opinion.     Compare  with.] 

The  mind  is  a  substantive  existence,  possessing  a  uniform 
structure,  of  a  character,  however,  fundamentally  different 
from  the  bodily  structure. 

G-.  T.  Curtis  Creation  or  Evolution  ch.  13,  p.  470. 

Clay  had  remained  essentially  different .  .  .  from  the  ordinary 
pro-slavery  man.     Carl  Schurz  Henry  Clay  vol.  i,  ch.  11,  p.  301. 

This  epoch  of  ours  differs  from  all  bygone  epochs  in  having 
no  philosophical  nor  religious  worshippers  of  the  ragged  godship 
of  poverty.  .    Ruskin  A  Joy  For  Ever  lect.  1,  p.  2. 

Most  single  topics  admit  or  require  a  considerable  variety  of 
books,  each  different  from  the  other  and  each  supplementing 
the  other.  Porter  Books  and  Reading  ch.  4,  p.  44. 

2.  Having  as  a  cause,  reason,  or  origin  :  noting  the  source, 
foundation,  or  instrument ;  because  of ;  by  reason  of ;  by  means 
of  ;  by  aid  of. ;  as,  the  river  flows  from  the  glacier  ;  his  skill 
comes  from  practise  ;  his  precaution  sprang  from  distrust ;  a 
quotation  from  Shakespeare  ;  reasoning  from  analogy  ;  let  me 
hear  frpm  you. 

Verbs  and  Other  Antecedents 
The  numerous  verbs,  adjectives,  etc.,  that  take  from  before 
th-eir  objective  term  are  well  set  forth  in  the  following  extract : 
[Have,  get,  borrow  from  make  from  interchange  with  of.  .  .  . 
With  the  notions  take  away,  extort,  exact,  from  is  always  pre- 
ferred. 


from 


Prepositions  100 


Demand,  desire,  enquire,  learn,  hear  from.     See  of. 

Other  employments  of  from  rest  upon  the  idea  of  distance  : 
the  notions  contemplated  are  of  privative  nature. 

Intransitive  verbs  attach  themselves  in  part  immediately  to 
verbs  of  movement,  or  coincide  with  them  (in  figurative 
meaning) . 

Deviate,  decline,  shrink,  dissent,  etc.  Here  occur  loithdraio, 
swerve,  stray,  turn,  shrink,  quail,  flinch,  start,  deviate,  decline, 
vary,  dissent,  differ,  used  figuratively,  and  similar  ones. 

Cease,  desist,  abstain,  rest,  and  the  like. 

Transitive  verbs  of  different  sorts  permit,  along  with  an 
accusative  of  the  person  or  of  the  thing,  an  adverbial  determi- 
nation with  from. 

Free  from — with  various  shades  of  the  notion  of  the  activity, 
as  free,  rid,  save,  deliver,  extricate,  rescue,  release,  redeem,  resus- 
citate, absolve,  excuse,  etc. 

Protect,  preserve,^  guard,  cover,  hide,  in  various  shades  of  the 
notions,  as  shield,  screen,  protect,  guard,  defend,  keep,  preserve, 
shelter,  hide,  conceal,  shade,  shadow,  wrap,  border  hard  on  the 
series  just  cited.  Here  also  privilege,  sanctify,  and  others  are 
to  be  referred,  which,  so  far  as  they  are  to  denote  a  rendering 
secure,  may  be  combined  with  from. 

Part,  disjoin,  divide,  separate,  sever,  sift,  screw,  disturb,  discour- 
age, divorce,  detract,  divert,  dissuade,  deter,  curb,  warp,  refrain, 
seduce,  alienate,  estrange,  hinder,  inhibit,  shut,  forbid,  prevent, 
except,  exempt,  exclude,  etc.,  to  which  in  part,  only  through  the 
combination  with  from,  the  privative  meaning  is  allotted. 

Distinguish  attaches  itself  to  the  preceding  verbs ;  but  it  is 
to  be  observed  that  verbs  of  knowing  and  perceiving  with  from, 
like  know,  see,  are  [often]  substituted  for  this  verbal  notion. 

Adjectives  which  attach  themselves  to  the  series  of  notions 
cited  are  likewise  combined  with  from.  They  are  not  numer- 
ous, and  are  chiefly  of  Romance  origin.  Many  of  them  take  of 
instead  of  from. 

Here  belong  free,  clear,  secure,  safe,  different,  exempt,  sepa- 
rate, alien,  foreign,  innocenty  entire,  and  the  like. 

The  use  of  /rom  with  the  notions  become,  make,  tranemvte, 
likewise  borders  on  the  idea  of  distance;  on  the  other  hand,  the 
object  introduced  with  from  appears  as  the  material  from 
which  anything  is  produced. 

Maetzner  English  Grammar  vol.  ii,  pp.  265-268.] 


101  Defined  and  Illustrated  from 

Distinctions 

[Against— from:  These  two  words  are  often  interchange- 
able ;  as,  "  Shelter /rom  the  blast  or  against  the  blast." 

Thus  we  may  say,  "Defend  us  against  or  from,  protect  us 
against  or  from,  secure  us  against  or  from,  our  enemies." 

Fallows  100,000  Synonyms  and  Antonyms  p.  363.] 

But  it  will  be  found  that  there  is  always  a  difference  in  the 
thought  according  to  the  word  used.  From  suggests  escape  or 
relief ;  against  suggests  defense  or  resistance. 

From — of:    See  Distinctions  under  OP. 

Errors 

As  a  matter  of  fact,  metaphysical  philosophy  substitutes  en- 
tities to  will  and  Nature  to  the  Creator.  L.  Levi  Bruhl  Philos- 
ophy of  Auguste  Comte  (tr.  from  French  by  K.  de  Beaumont) 
p.  45,  1.  7. 

After  substitute  or  substitution  correct  usage  requires  for 
And  not  to 

Instead  for  consultation  he  uses  consult. 
Joseph  Priestley  The  Rudiments  of  English  Grammar  p.  1,43. 

Instead  is  always  followed  by  of  and  not  by  for. 

From  misunderstanding  the  directions,  we  lost  our  way. 

Murray's  Key  p.  201. 

From  in  such  use  is  perhaps  not  incorrect,  but  it  is  not  the 
best  word.  Through  misunderstanding,  etc.,  would  be  better; 
or  a  phrase,  as  because  of  or  in  consequence  of  might  well  be 
employed. 


IX— Prepositions  Defined  and  Illustrated 

IN 

In  is  the  Anglo-Saxon  in,  and,  as  stated  by  Maetzner,  "seems 
to  point  to  a  local  abiding."  In  may  be  termed  specifically  the 
preposition  of  inclusion. 

I.  Of  place  or  space : 

1,  Denoting  the  object  as  surrounding  or  including  in  space: 

(a)  Within  the  bounds  of;  within  the  contour,  surface,  or 
exterior  of;  enveloped  or  restrained  by;  contained  or  included 
within ;  pertaining  to  or  connected  with  the  interior  of ;  within ; 
inside ;  as,  the  stars  in  the  sky ;  the  prisoner  in  chains ;  a  story  in 
a  book ;  a  room  in  the  house ;  she  clasped  the  child  in  her  arms. 

Finds  tongues  in  trees,  books  in  the  running  brooks. 
Sermons  in  stones,  and  good  in  everything. 

Shakespeare  As  You  Like  It  act  ii,  sc.  1. 

Nor  night-bird,  chambered  in  the  rocks. 

Wordsworth  Peter  Bell  pt.  ii,  st.  18. 

My  foreign  friends,  who  dream'd  us  blanketed 
In  ever-closing  fog,  were  much  amazed. 

Tennyson  Queen  Mary  act  iii,  sc.  2. 

In  every  representative  body  properly  constituted  the  people 
are  practically  present. 

Sumner  Speeches  and  Addresses  July  7, 1853,  p.  207. 

Pretty  faces  framed  in  pretty  bonnets  are  meant  to  be  seen. 

Holmes  Autocrat  ch.  8,  p.  225. 

(&)  Within  the  class  or  group  of ;  comprised  or  included 
within  the  number  of ;  among ;  as,  in  the  army ;  one  in  a  thou- 
sand. 

Jonathan  Edwards  .  .  .  was  bred  in  the  family  of  a  Connect- 
icut minister.    Holmes  Pages  from  an  Old  Volume  essay  xi,  p.  367. 

(102) 


103       Prepositions  Defined  and  Illustrated  in 

She  is  the  only  genuine  '  bucker '  in  the  outfit,  .  .  .  the  only 
bona  fide  bucking  horse  that  ever  threw  me. 

Baillie-Grohman  Camps  in  the  Rockies  ch.  4,  p.  100. 

She  never  had  a  fire ;  one  in  a  sleeping-room  would  have  been 
sinful  luxury  in  the  poor  minister's  family. 

Mary  E.  Wilkins  Humble  Romance,  Moral  Exigency  p.  221. 

(c)  With  the  compounds  of  self,  as  himself ,  herself,  itself, 
etc.,  denoting  separation  from  all  else,  and  nearly  equivalent  to 
by ;  as,  to  know  the  thing  in  itself. 

A  man  was  not  made  to  shut  up  his  mind  in  itself ;  but  to 
give  it  voice  and  to  exchange  it  for  other  minds. 

Channing  Works,  Self-Culture  p.  19. 

2,  Denoting  the  object  or  that  which  it  surrounds  as  a  goal 
or  end  of  motion : 

(a)  Toward,  so  as  to  enter;  into,  so  as  to  remain  within; 
into;  to;  as,  to  sink  in  the  mire;  to  dip  the  pen  m  ink;  to  put 
one  in  a  rage ;  to  break  in  pieces. 

[Note. — Such  phrases  as  '  *  Come  in  the  house,"  ' '  He  fell  in  the 
water,"  are  used,  but  in  such  cases  into  is  preferred.    See  into.] 

Golden  tresses,  wreathed  in  one, 
As  the  braided  streamlets  run  ! 

Longfellow  Maidenhood  st.  2. 

Never  put  yourself  in  the  wrong  with  an  audience.  It  has 
every  advantage  of  you. 

N.  Sheppard  Before  an  Audience  ch.  8,  p.  130. 

It  is  singular  how  much  fonder  civilians  are  of  urging  meas- 
ures that  end  in  blood  than  those  whose  profession  is  arms. 

S.  Lover  Handy  Andy  ch.  19,  p.  175. 

Expecting  immediate  support  from  Normandy,  the  conspira- 
tors hastened  to  put  themselves  in  a  military  posture. 

W.  Russell  Modern  Europe  vol.  i,  letter  xxiii,  p.  144. 

This  is  the  first  time  my  honour  was  ever  called  in  question. 

Gay  Beggar's  Opera  act  ii,  sc.  2. 

{b)  Toward,  so  as  to  rely  or  rest  on ;  as,  to  hope  in  God ;  to 
trust  in  one's  innocence. 


In  Prepositions  104 

I  believe  in  .  .  .  the  holy  Catholic  Church.     Apostles'  Creed. 

The  belief  in  astrology  was  almost  universal  in  the  middle  of 
the  17th  century.  Scott  Guy  Mannering  ch.  4,  p.  39. 

I  believe  fully,  enthusiastically,  without  break,  pause,  or 
aberration,  in  the  divinity  of  Christ. 

H.  W.  Beecher  Doctrinal  Beliefs,  Faith  in  Christ  p.  17. 

Trust  in  the  certitude  of  compensatory  justice. 

Swinburne  in  The  Athenceum  July  10,  1886,  p.  49. 

II.  Of  time : 

1 .  Included  within  ;  occupying  all  or  a  part  of  ;  during  ; 
within ;  as,  in  the  forenoon ;  in  the  evening ;  in  the  past  century. 

'Tis  vain  !  in  such  a  brassy  age    I  could  not  move  a  thistle. 

Tennyson  Amphion  st.  9. 

The  bridge  was  in  the  very  act  of  being  thrown  and  grappled 
to  the  ramparts.  W.  Ware  Zenobia  vol.  ii,  letter  xiv,  p.  183. 

It  is  not  once  only  that  the  well-planned  schemes  of  swindling 
turfites  have  been  quietly  strangled  in  their  birth. 

Contemporary  Review  June,  1873,  p.  23. 

There  are  certain  intellectual  products  which  are  only  pos- 
sible in  hours  or  minutes  of  great  cerebral  excitement. 

Hamerton  Intell.  Life  pt.  x,  letter  v,  p.  360. 

2.  Denoting  the  final  point  of  a  specified  or  indicated  period : 
at  the  end  of ;  at  the  close  of ;  after  the  lapse  or  expiration  of ; 
after ;  as,  in  an  hour  it  will  fall ;  in  a  year  I  shall  return ;  due  in 
three  months.  The  period  may  be  indefinite ;  as,  in  time  he  will 
conquer. 

In  an  hour  everything  indicated  an  immediate  and  bloody 
confiict.  Webster  Works,  Bunker  Hill  p.  90. 

III.  Of  various  relations : 

I .  Denoting  something  as  limiting  or  specifying :  with  regard 
to;  as  regards;  with  respect  to ;  on  the  part  of;  for;  to;  of;  as, 
round  in  the  shoulders ;  weak  in  faith ;  you  are  deceived  in  him ; 
he  is  unfortunate  in  his  friends. 


105  Defined  and  Illustrated  in 

"We  .  .  .  should  be  ashamed  in  this  same  confident  boasting. 

^  Cor.  ix,  4. 

The  contrivances  of  nature  surpass  the  contrivances  of  art  in 
the  complexity,  subtility,  and  curiosity  of  the  mechanism. 

Paley  Natural  Theology  ch.  3,  p.  20. 

Spanish  statesmanship  could  beat  the  world  in  the  art  of 
delay.  Motley  United  Netherlands  vol.  iv,  ch.  41,  p.  165. 

Simple  honesty  of  purpose  in  a  man  goes  a  long  way  in  life. 

Smiles  Character  ch.  1,  p.  18. 

True  as  the  steel  of  their  tried  blades.    Heroes  in  heart  and  hand. 

Halleck  Marco  Bozzaris  st.  2. 

In  man  as  in  lower  animals,  the  thatch  of  hair  indeed  forms 
an  effective  shelter  to  the  head. 

E.  B.  Tylor  Anthropology  ch.  2,  p.  44. 

2.  Denoting  material,  means,  occupation,  instrument,  or 
essence,  or  the  sphere  within  which  anything  acts :  by  means  of ; 
with  the  use  of ;  by ;  through ;  as,  he  spoke  in  a  whisper ;  in  the 
king's  name ;  to  work  in  gold ;  to  deal  in  hardware ;  virtue  con- 
sists in  doing  right. 

[We  may  certainly  call  this  the  instrumental  use  of  the  prep- 
osition in.  Maetzner  English  Grammar  vol.  ii,  p.  347.] 

The  savory  pulp  they  chew,  and  in  the  rind 

Still  as  they  thirsted,  scoop  the  brimming  stream. . 

Milton  Paradise  Lost  bk.  iv,  1.  336. 

In  all  the  sports  of  children,  were  it  only  in  their  wanton 

breakages  and  defacements,  you  shall  discern  a  creative  instinct. 

Carlyle  Sartor  Resartus  bk.  ii,  ch.  2,  p.  73. 

Her  rattling  shrouds,  all  sheathed  in  ice. 
With  the  masts  went  by  the  board. 

Longfellow  Wreck  of  the  Hesperus  st.  19. 

Vice  is  ever  conceived  in  darkness  and  cradled  in  obscurity. 
Greeley  American  Conflict  vol.  i,  ch.  2,  p.  24. 
Descartes  .  .  .  made  the  essence,  the  very  existence  of  the 
soul,  to  consist  in  actual  thought. 

Hamilton  Metaphysics  lect.  xvii,  p.  218. 

[Note. — For  the  phrases  consist  in  and  consist  of  see  Dis 
tinctions  under  of.] 


in 


Prepositions  106 


That  man's  mind  is  apt  to  become  small  as  a  pin  point  who  is 
employed  all  his  life  in  making  a  pin  point. 

MoCosH  Emotions  bk.  i,  ch.  1,  p.  20. 

•Pursuant  to  the  King's  orders,  I  passed  the  night  before  last 
.  .  .  in  waiting  upon  the  friends  of  the  King. 

Thackeray  Henry  Esmond  bk.  iii,  ch.  13,  p.  443. 

3.  Denoting  a  thing  or  person  as  the  object  of  an  emotion: 
because  of  ;  in  the  act  of  ;  on  account  of  :  sometimes  nearly 
equivalent  to  at  or  of ;  as,  to  delight  in  strife ;  to  take  pleasure 
in  doing  good ;  exulting  in  victory. 

O,  not  in  cruelty,  not  in  wrath.     The  Reaper  came  that  day. 
Longfellow  Reaper  and  the  Flowers  st.  7. 

And  now  Wentworth  exulted  in  the  near  prospect  of  Thorough. 
Macaulay  England  vol.  i,  ch.  1,  p.  71. 

The  Woodman's  heart  is  in  his  work,     His  axe  is  sharp  and  good. 

Hood  The  Elm  Tree  pt.  ii,  st.  5. 

My  mother's  son  cannot  learn  to  delight  in  thin  potations. 

Scott  Quentin  Durivard  int. ,  p.  6. 

He  lost  interest  even  in  the  dinner  parties,  with  a  business 
squint,  that  he  had  been  so  fond  of  giving. 

Eggleston  The  Faith  Doctor  ch.  4,  p.  42. 

Some  of  Brehm's  monkeys  took  much  delight  in  teasing,  in 
various  ingenious  ways,  a  certain  old  dog  whom  they  disliked. 
Darwin  Descent  of  Man  vol.  i,  ch.  2,  p.  40. 

4.  Denoting  a  cause  or  occasion  present  with  an  action :  dur- 
ing the  continuance  of  and  because  of ;  because  of ;  on  account 
of;  by;  through;  as,  stumbling  in  fear;  shouting  in  anger. 

In  this  revival  [of  religion  in  Kentucky  about  1801]  originated 
our  camp-meetings.  P.  Cartwright  Autobiography  p.  45. 

The  Gothic  church  plainly  originated  in  a  rude  adaptation  of 

the  forest  trees  with  all  their  boughs  to  a  festal  or  solemn  arcade. 

Emerson  Essays,  History  in  first  series,  p.  24. 

Mirrors,  effaced  in  their  own  clearness,  send 
Her  only  image  on  through  deepening  deeps 
With  endless  repercussion  of  delight. 

Lowell  The  Cathedral  st.  7. 


107  Defined  and  Illustrated  In 

Johnson  .  .  .  lives  neither  in  his  prose  nor  in  his  verse,  but 
ill  the  record  of  his  daily  talk  at  the  hand  of  his  friend  James 
Boswell.    E.  A.  Freeman  in  The  Chautauquan  Aug.,  1891,  p.  643. 

That  in  the  creation  of  the  United  States  the  world  had 
reached  one  of  the  turning  points  in  its  history  seems  at  the 
time  to  have  entered  into  the  thought  of  not  a  single  European 
statesman.      Green  Hist.  Eng.  People  vol.  iv,  bk.  ix,  ch.  3,  p.  272. 

5,  Denoting  physical,  mental,  or  moral  conditions,  charac- 
teristics, affections,  circumstances,  or  activities :  in  the  midst  of ; 
amid;  under  the  influence  of;  affected  by;  subject  to;  with; 
as,  to  be  in  health,  in  doubt,  in  error;  to  depart  in  pursuit;  to 
laugh  in  scorn. 

While  the  king  was  detained  in  the  north,  every  cantred  in 
Wales  had  risen  in  arms.     Lingard  Erigland  vol.  ii,  ch.  4,  p.  131. 

Charles  had  unhappily  long  been  in  the  habit  of  perverting  his 

natural  acuteness  to  the  mean  subterfuges  of  equivocal  language. 

H.  Hallam  Constitutional  Hist.  Eng.  vol.  ii,  ch.  10,  pt.  1,  p.  190. 

He  came,  the  gentle  satirist  [Addison],  who  hit  no  unfair 
blow ;  the  kind  judge  who  castigated  only  in  smiling. 

Thackeray  English  Humorists  lect.  ii,  p.  83. 

The  effect  is  enhanced  if  the  ride  be  taken  in  crass  darkness. 
E.  E.  Hale  Seven  Spanish  Cities  ch.  8,  p.  93. 

Tarry  the  Lord's  leisure.  Wait  in  obedience  as  a  servant,  in 
hope  as  an  heir,  in  expectation  as  a  believer.  Spurgeon  Treas- 
ury of  David,  Psalm  XXXVII.  in  vol.  ii,  p.  197. 

Some  capsized  in  an  angry  breeze. 

Holmes  Old  Cruiser  st.  11. 

They  sounded  the  bugles  an'  the  trumpets, 
And  march'd  on  in  brave  array. 
Legendary  Ballads  ed.  by  Roberts  Battle  of  Corrichie  st.  7. 

The  fibrin  of  the  blood  is  increased  in  acute  rheumatism 
more  than  in  any  other  disease. 

Flint  Prin.  and  Prac.  of  Med.  pt.  ii,  ch.  2,  p.  317. 

6.  Denoting  conformity  or  appropriateness  :  conformably  to ; 
according  to ;  after ;  as,  in  my  opinion ;  m  all  reason. 


tn  Prepositions  108 

Th'  unlettered  Christian,  who  believes  in  gross, 
Plods  on  to  heaven,  and  ne'er  is  at  a  loss. 

Dryden  Religio  Laid  1.  323. 

And  in  the  visions  of  romantic  youth, 
What  years  of  endless  bliss  are  yet  to  flow  I 

Campbell  Gertrude  of  Wyoming  pt.  iii,  st.  5. 

The  critic,  in  his  conception,  was  not  the  narrow  lawgiver  or 
the  rigid  censor  that  he  is  often  assumed  to  be. 

H.  James,  Jr.  in  North  American  Review  Jan.,  1880,  p.  56. 

The  independent  continental  areas  are  three  in  number. 

Dana  Geology  pt.  i,  ch.  1,  p.  13. 

Nature  had  been  left  to  brighten  the  spot  in  her  own  way. 

Christine  C.  Brush  Inside  Our  Gate  ch.  7,  p.  170. 

7.  Denoting  kind,  manner,  degree,  measure,  direction,  or 
distribution ;  as,  the  hawk  flew  in  a  circle ;  ten  feet  in  length  ; 
in  fact ;  in  truth ;  false  in  every  particular. 

I  am  to  lead  my  reader,  perhaps  in  a  reluctant  path. 

Draper  Intell.  Devel.  Europe  vol.  i,  ch.  1,  p.  23. 

Nothing  so  difficult  to  send,  or  which  is  so  easily  spoilt  in  the 
carriage,  as  news. 

Smith  in  Lady  Holland's  Sydney  Smith  vol.  ii,  p.  210. 

There  is  nothing  (if  you  will  believe  the  Opposition)  so  diffi- 
cult as  to  bully  a  whole  people ;  whereas,  in  fact,  there  is  nothing 
so  easy.       Smith  in  Lady  Holland's  Sydney  Smith  vol.  ii,  p.  210. 

The  structure  [of  Landor's  'Gebir']  is  noble  in  the  main, 
though  chargeable,  like  Tennyson's  earlier  poetry,  with  vague- 
ness here  and  there.  E.  C.  Stedman  Victorian  Poets  p.  40. 

All  bodies,  whatever  their  temperatures,  constantly  radiate 
heat  in  all  directions.  Ganot  Physics  tr.  by  Atkinson,  1[  415,  p.  387. 

Verbs  and  Other  Antecedents 
From  its  very  extended  use,  in  may  follow  any  one  of  num- 
berless words  in  some  combination  of  use  and  meaning.    As 
denoting  the  quality,  aspect,  or  other  relation  to  which  the  verb 
is  applied,  in  is  especially  used  after  verbs  like  equal,  match, 


109  Defined  and  Illustrated  in 

rival,  vie,  excel,  exceed,  surpass,  and  the  like;  also  with  abate, 
advance,  fail,  fall,  grow,  improve,  increase,  rise,  sink,  and  the 
like ;  also  with  verbs  of  participation ;  as,  part,  share,  engage, 
interfere,  join,  meddle  (which  also  takes  with) ,  participate,  and 
the  like. 

Distinctions 

[In,  at,  on:  When  these  words  denote  time  we  may  say,  '*At 
the  honr  of  12,  on  the  24th  of  September,  in  the  year  1881." 

**The  old,  old  story  was  told  again  at  five  o'clock  in  the 
morning." 

''At  nine  o'clock  on  the  morning  of  May  4th." 

Fallows  100,000  Synonyms  and  Antonyms.'] 

[In,  within :  In  a  few  cases  these  words  are  interchangeable. 
Within,  however,  is  more  emphatic  than  in. 

We  may  say  tcithin  the  range  of  his  influence,  or  in  the 
range,  etc. ;  within  his  power,  or  in  his  power ;  within  ten  min- 
utes, or  in  ten  minutes. 

In  my  Father's  house  are  many  mansions. — John  xiv.  2. 

In  cases  like  the  following,  however,  within  does  not  mean 
the  same  as  in,  and  is  less  emphatic.  It  was  within  his  grasp. 
It  was  in  his  grasp.  In  the  first  instance  it  may  simply  mean  it 
was  in  the  limits,  or  compass  of  his  grasp ;  in  the  other  instance 
it  would  mean  that  it  was  actually  in  his  grasp. 

Within -mesins  "in  the  inner  or  interior  part";  **  inside  of": 
** within  the  limits  of";  and  is  opposite  to  without.  Within 
these  doors;  within  this  roof ;  within  this  house ;  within  himself; 
within  one's  income ;  within  ten  miles.  We  may  say,  '  *  Is  Mrs. 
Potter  within,  or  in  9"    Id.] 

[In,  into :  When  entrance  or  insertion  is  denoted,  into  should 
be  used  and  not  in. 

He  went  into  the  hall.  She  rode  into  the  park.  They  took  a 
ride  with  their  friends  in  Central  Park. 

Many  innovations  were  introduced  into  the  College. 

They  looked  into  the  book. 

He  infused  life  into  the  Review. 

When  a  change  is  made  from  one  form  or  state  into  another, 
into  is  used. 

Water  is  convertible  into  vapor.  He  was  led  by  evidence 
into  a  belief  of  the  truth.     The  manuscripts  were  put  iiito  shape. 


inside  PREPOSITIONS  110 

In  is  often  used  for  into  when  the  noun  is  omitted  to  which  it 
properly  belongs ;  as,  These  are  in,  those  are  out,  i.  e. ,  in  office, 
or  out  of  office.  Come  in,  i.  e. ,  come  into  the  house.  The  ship 
has  come  in,  i.  e. ,  come  into  port. 

We  may  say  cut,  tear,  break  in,  into,  or  to  pieces.  Separated, 
or  divided  into  several  parts.  He  fell  deeply  in  love;  into  a 
melancholy  condition;  into  a  decline.  He  was  put  in  a  hard 
place,  or  into  a  sad  perplexity.  Their  conduct  came  in  question. 
They  examined  into  his  conduct. 

Into  indicates  motion,  change,  entrance,  in  a  more  marked 
degree  than  in.    Id.  ] 

There  are  cases  where  either  in  or  into  might  be  used,  but 
with  some  difference  of  meaning. 

The  most  awful  idea  connected  with  the  catacombs  is  their 
interminable  extent,  and  the  possibility  of  going  astray  into  this 
labyrinth  of  darkness.        Hawthorne  Marble  Faun  ch.  3,  p.  39. 

Here  it  would  haVe  been  correct  to  say,  **  going  astray  in  this 
labyrinth  of  darkness,"  i.  e.,  within  it,  so  as  to  be  enclosed  by  it. 
' '  Going  astray  into  it "  suggests  the  moving  on  and  on  to  and 
toward  new,  more  distant,  and  more  hopeless  depths,  and  is 
hence  the  more  expressive  phrase. 

Consist  in,  consist  of:    See  Distinctions  under  of. 

Inside  is  a  modem  word  compounded  of  in  and  side. 

In  or  into  the  interior  of;  within;  as,  he  stepped  inside  the 
gate ;  it  stands  just  inside  the  door. 

[Note. — The  common  popular  usage  is  of  the  adverb  followed 
by  of,  inside  of] 

The  Captain  stood  well  to  the  westward,  to  run  inside  of  the 
Bermudas.     R.  H.  Dana  Two  Years  before  the  Mast  ch.  33,  p.  214. 

Il^TO 

Into  is  derived  from  the  Anglo-Saxon  in,  in,  plus  to,  to.  Into 
is  the  preposition  of  tendency,  as  in  is  of  position  or  situation. 

[In  and  to ;  to  and  in :  implying  motion :  used  to  express  any 
relation,  as  of  presence,  situation,  inclusion,  etc.,  that  is  ex- 
pressed by  in,  accompanied  by  the  idea  of  motion  or  direction 
inward.  Century  Dictionary.] 


Ill  Defined  and  Illustrated  into 

I,  With  reference  to  place  or  space,  of  action  tending  toward 
and  terminating  in :  so  as  to  enter  or  penetrate ;  to  and  in ;  so  as 
to  reach  or  perceive  what  is  within ;  to  or  toward  the  inside  of , 
as,  come  into  the  house ;  he  thrust  the  spear  into  the  heart  of  his 
foe ;  he  looked  into  the  room. 

[In  some  phrases  of  this  kind,  in  is  also  used ;  as,  put  it  in 
water.  Where  the  idea  of  remaining  or  being  in  is  more  promi- 
nent than  that  of  motion  into,  such  expressions  are  allowable, 
but  the  present  tendency  is  to  discriminate  the  two  words,  using 
into  where  motion  or  tendency  is  to  be  expressed,  and  in  to  de- 
note the  simple  fact  of  being  or  remaining  within ;  thus,  '  *  Come 
in  the  house  "  is  held  to  be  less  elegant  as  well  as  less  accurate 
than  "Come  into  the  house."    Compare  in.] 

He  was  more  strongly  tempted  ...  to  make  excursive  bolts 
into  the  neighboring  alleys  when  he  answered  the  door. 

Dickens  Martin  Chuzzlewit  ch.  9,  p.  172. 

Sforza  .  .  .  had  first  called  the  barbarians  into  Italy. 

Prescott  Ferd.  and  Isa.  vol.  iii,  pt.  ii,  ch.  10,  p.  6. 

Sunrise  threw  a  golden  beam  into  the  study,  and  laid  it  right 
across  the  minister's  bedazzled  eyes. 

Hawthorne  Scarlet  Letter  ch.  20,  p.  255. 

I  plunged  into  the  sea, 
And,  buffeting  the  billows  to  her  rescue, 
Redeemed  her  life  with  half  the  loss  of  mine. 

Otway  Venice  Preserved  act  i,  sc.  1. 

His  road  [lay]  open  .  .  .  into  the  very  bowels  of  the  republic. 
Motley  United  Netherlands  vol.  iv,  ch.  44,  p.  234. 

Our  several  borrowings  were  thrust  into  sl  wallet,  which  was 
sometimes  in  his  pocket,  and  sometimes  in  mine. 

N.  P.  Willis  Prose  Writings,  Female  Ward  p.  108. 

We  emerge  from  shade  into  sunshine,  and  observe  the  smoke 
of  a  distant  cataract  jetting  from  the  side  of  the  mountain. 

Tyndall  Hours  of  Exercise  ch.  11,  p.  126. 

II.  Of  time :  extending  within  or  protracted  to ;  as,  this  will 
reach  far  into  the  twentieth  century;  the  minutes  lengthened 
into  hours. 


Into  Prepositions  112 

How  far  into  the  morning  is  it,  lords  ?  .  .  .  Upon  the  stroke 
of  four.  Shakespeare  K.  Richard  III.  act  v,  sc.  3,  1.  236. 

Ill,  Of  various  relations  following  the  analogy  of  the  rela- 
tion of  place  or  space. 

1.  So  as  to  infuse  or  impart  to;  so  as  to  become  affected  by 
or  united  with ;  as,  to  put  meaning  into  the  words ;  to  put  life 
into  the  picture ;  to  marry  into  a  family. 

Whatever  passion  enters  into  a  sentence  or  decision,  so  far 
will  there  be  in  it  a  tincture  of  injustice. 

Addison  The  Guardian  July  4,  1713. 

One  great  thought  breathed  into  a  man  may  regenerate  him. 
Channing  Works,  Laboring  Classes  p.  49. 

A  moral  should  be  wrought  into  the  body  and  soul,  the  mat- 
ter and  tendency,  of  a  poem,  not  tagg'd  to  the  end. 

Lamb  Letters  vol.  i,  ch.  5,  p.  133. 

Infuse  into  the  purpose  with  which  you  follow  the  various 
employments  and  professions  of  life  .  .  .  this  sense  of  beauty, 
and  you  are  transformed  at  once  from  an  artisan  into  an  artist. 

E.  P.  Whipple  Success  essay  viii,  p.  208. 

The  man  who  can't  put  fire  into  his  speeches  should  put  his 
speeches  into  the  fire.  Mathews  Oratory  and  Orators  ch.  4,  p.  108. 

2.  So  as  to  change  to ;  so  as  to  become ;  asTto.  convert  water 
into  steam ;  to  translate  Greek  into  English. 

One  of  the  Seven  Wise  Men  of  Greece  boiled  his  wisdom 
down  into  [these]  words,  .  .  .  nothing  too  much. 

Holmes  Over  the  Teacups  ch.  8,  p.  181. 

The  English  into  which  Chapman  transfuses  the  meaning  of 
the  mighty  ancient  is  often  singularly  and  delicately  beautiful. 
Craik  Eng.  Lit.  and  Lang. ,  Chapman's  Homer  in  vol.  i,  p.  574. 

I  cannot  shape  my  tongue 
To  syllable  black  deeds  into  smooth  names. 

Byron  Marino  Faliero  act  iii,  sc.  1. 

In  any  great  district  of  caverns,  we  usually  have  the  under- 
ground spaces  divided  into  distinct  classes  of  which  the  upper- 
most was  the  earliest  to  be  constructed. 

N.  S.  Shaler  Aspects  of  Earth,  Caverns  p.  114. 


■ )         V 

113  Defined  and  Illustrated  into 

3*  In  mathematics,  so  as  to  unite  as  a  factor  with;  as,  to 
multiply  a  into  x  -|-  y. 

Verbs  and  Other  Antecedents 

[Into  stands  along  with  to,  with  the  notions  of  becoming  or 
making  into  something  and  of  transformation  into  something. 

Here  also  belong  the  notions  of  falling,  breaking,  bursting, 
and  taking  to  pieces,  and  the  like,  as  well  as  parting  and  divi- 
ding, where  the  pieces  or  parts  become,  after  intransitive  and 
transitive  verbs,  determinations  of  the  subject  or  object : 

The  notion  of  uniting  or  blending  is  also  construed  with  into 
where  the  result  of  the  combination  is  also  to  be  denoted  : 

Whether  with  the  notion  of  translating  {into  a  language)  we 
should  rather  join  the  idea  of  transmutation  or  of  removal  may 
appear  doubtful.       Maetzner  English  Grammar  vol.  ii,  p.  810.] 

Distinctions 
In— into :    See  Distinctions  under  in. 

Errors 

The  following  erroneous  uses    of   in   are  given  in  Goold 

Brown's  Grammar  of  English  Grammars : 

It  will  be  despatched,  in  most  occasions,  without  resting. 

John  Locke  Small  English  Grammar. 

Based  in  the  great  self-evident  truths  of  liberty  and  equality. 

Scholar's  Manual. 

In  the  above-quoted  sentences  correct  usage  would  require 
one  to  write  ''on  most  occasions"  and  "based  on  the  great  self- 
evident  truths. " 

But  they  have  egregiously  fallen  in  that  inconveniency. 

Barclay's  Works  iii,  p.  73. 

Here  we  should  say  **  fallen  into,"  not  **  fallen  in." 

If  the  addition  consists  in  two  or  more  words. 

LiNDLEY  Murray  English  Grammar  p.  176. 

Consist  in  may  at  times  be  properly  used,  but  here  the  cor- 
rect phrase  would  be  consist  of.    See  Distinctions  under  of. 


like  Prepositions  114 


See  TO,  m.,  1. 

See  AMID,  AMIDST. 


LIKE 
l»iID,  MIDST 


MOIVO,  MOl^OST 


See  AMONG,  AMONGST. 

NOTWITHSTAWDIXO 

See  Participial  Prepositions. 

]\[£AR 

See  TO,  in.,  1. 

OF 

Of  is  derived  from  the  Anglo-Saxon  of,  from. 

[Etymologically  and  in  earliest  use  the  meaning  of  of  is  that 
of  departure  or  going  away  from  or  out  of  a  particular  place  or 
position.  (Compare  off.)  But  this  usage  is  now  the  less  com- 
mon one,  the  genitival  relation  which  of  also  represents  having, 
by  transition  from  the  relation  of  issuance  to  that  of  connec- 
tion, become  the  customary  and  usual  signification. 

Standard  Dictionary,'] 

[A  word  primarily  expressing  the  idea  of  literal  departure 
away  from  or  out  of  a  place  or  position.  It  passes  from  this 
physical  application  to  the  figurative  meaning  of  departure  or 
derivation  as  from  a  source  or  cause.  Finally  it  transforms  the 
idea  of  derivation  or  origin  through  several  intermediate  grada- 
tions of  meaning  into  that  of  possessing  or  being  possessed  by, 
pertaining  to,  or  being  connected  with,  in  almost  any  relation 
of  thought.  Century  Dictionary.'] 

Such  descriptive  paragraphs  as  those  above  quoted  really 
give  a  better  idea  of  the  meaning  of  this  often-recurring  prepo- 
sition than  attempted  definitions  of  its  fine  shades  of  meaning, 
which  perpetually  merge  into  each  other.  In  the  following 
arrangement  the  endeavor  has  been  to  abbreviate,  condense, 
and  simplify  rather  than  to  extend  the  definitions,  which  by 
close  analysis  may  be  subdivided  almost  without  limit.    As 


115  Defined  and  Illustrated  of 

from  has  been  called  distinctively  the  preposition  of  separation, 
of  might  be  termed  the  preposition  of  origin  or  source,  though 
the  idea  of  separation  is  also  included. 

Starting  with  the  idea  of  separation  in  space,  of  comes  to 
denote  any  relation  as  of  movement,  position,  origin,  possession, 
etc.,  into  which  the  idea  of  separation  from,  proceeding  from, 
being  derived  from,  or  the  like  may  even  remotely  enter. 

I.  Of  place  or  space : 

1.  Denoting  relative  position :  in  distance  or  direction  from ; 
as  within  a  mile  of  the  shore ;  Massachusetts  lies  north  of  Con- 
necticut. 

In  the  vicinity  of  coral  reefs  and  islands  the  attrition  of  the 
waves  imparts  a  milky  complexion  to  the  sea. 

Winchell  Walks  and  Talks  ch.  11,  p.  66. 

They  cannot  go  back  of  the  returns.  It  is  their  business 
simply  officially  to  announce  the  result. 

New-York  Tribune  Nov.  14,  1891,  p.  6,  col.  3. 

Free-will  is  a  fact  of  consciousness,  and  we  can  neither  go 
back  of  the  testimony  of  consciousness  nor  explain  that  away. 
J.  P.  Thompson  Theology  of  Christ  ch.  9,  p.  115. 

Tall  gaunt  stacks  rise  out  of  the  waves  in  front  of  the  cliffs 
of  which  they  once  formed  a  part. 

Arch.  Geikie  Oeol.  Sketches  ch.  2,  p.  24. 

Korth  of  the  town  stands  the  castle  of  San  Carlos  —  a  square 
fort,  with  a  moat  and  glacis.    R.  A.  Wilson  Mexico  ch.  7,  p.  85. 

2.  Denoting  location  in ;  belonging  to  or  connected  with  as  a 
locality;  as,  the  tower  o/ London;  the  coast  o/ England. 

Braw,  braw  lads  of  Gala  Water. 

Burns  Braw  Lads  of  Gala  Water  chorus. 

The  Commons  of  England,  the  Tiers-Etat  of  France,  the 
bourgeoisie  of  the  Continent  generally,  are  the  descendants  of 
this  class  [artisans].  Mill  Polit  Econ.  prelim.,  p.  12. 

3.  Noting  eytent  or  distance ;  measuring ;  covering ;  amount- 
ing to;  as,  a  start  of  twenty  yards;  a  plot  of  two  acres. 


of  Prepositions  116 

The  buildings  [of  South  Carolina  College]  disposed  about  a 
square  of  ten  acres,  which  is  called  the  Campus. 

R.  Mills  Statistics  of  South  Carolina  [1826]  p.  701. 

The  farm  of  Cincinnatus  consisted  of  about  three-and-a-half 
statute  acres. 

C.  W.  HOSKYNS  Hist.  Agriculture,  Ancient  Period  p.  41. 

II,  Of  time :  denoting  the  occasion,  period,  age,  or  the  like ; 
pertaining  to  or  connected  with ;  as,  the  age  of  chivalry ;  from 
the  moment  of  his  birth ;  I  have  known  him  of  old. 

The  fate  of  the  Triennial  Bill  confounded  all  the  calculations 
of  the  best-informed  politicians  of  that  time. 

Macaulay  England  vol.  iv,  ch.  20,  p.  382. 

The  outlawed  pirate  of  one  year  was  promoted  the  next  to  be 
a  governor  and  his  country's  representative. 

Froude  Eng.  in  West  Indies  ch.  1,  p.  10. 

III.  Of  various  relations  : 

1.  Denoting  separation  other  than  merely  local,  and  often 
exchangeable  with  from. 

(a)  From  by  separation,  riddance,  or  removal ;  as,  free  of 
debt ;  quit  of  blame ;  cured  of  a  bad  habit ;  relieved  of  a  burden. 
See  Distinctions. 

Dick  at  the  front  door  delivered  himself  of  the  words  he  had 
been  boggling  over  for  the  last  two  hours. 

Kipling  Light  that  Failed  ch.  1,  p.  14. 

I  did  consent;    And  often  did  beguile  her  of  her  tears. 

Shakespeare  Othello  act  i,  sc.  3. 

I  was  like  a  man  bereft  of  life. 

BuNYAN  Works,  Grace  Abounding  p.  46. 

The  bereavement  of  death  is  never  devoid  of  a  sense  of  holy 
calm,  a  sort  of  solemn  peace  connected  with  the  memory  of  the 
lost  one.  Lever  Tom  Burke  Of 'Ours'  ch.  42,  p.  127. 

Yes,  fortune  may  bereave  me  of  my  crown. 

Thomas  Kyd  Spanish  Tragedy  act  i,  sc.  1. 


117  Defined  and  Illustrated  of 

The  holly,  providently  planted  about  the  house  [of  the  English 
peasant] ,  to  cheat  winter  of  its  dreariness. 

Irving  Sketch-Book,  Rural  Life  in  England  p.  84. 

They  were  bom  of  a  race  of  funeral  flowers 
That  garlanded,  in  long-gone  hours, 
A  templar's  knightly  tomb. 

Fitz-Greene  Halleck  Alnwick  Castle  st.  5. 

The  old  Abou  Do,  being  resolved  upon  work,  had  divested 
himself  of  his  tope  or  toga  before  starting. 

Baker  Nile  Trib.  Abyssinia  ch.  13,  p.  333. 

[Note. — In  such  connection  out  of  is  often  used. 

The  besom  of  reform  has  swept  him  out  of  office. 

Hawthorne  Scarlet  Letter,  Custom  House  p.  14.] 

(5)  From  as  a  source,  origin,  material,  or  agency;  with  ref- 
erence to ;  as  proceeding  from ;  on  the  part  of ;  as,  he  is  of  a  noble 
family ;  bom  of  woman ;  the  son  of  David ;  made  of  gold ;  it  is 
very  good  of  you  to  say  so. 

My  pride  was  tamed,  and  in  our  grief 
I  of  the  Parish  asked  relief. 

Wordsworth  The  Last  of  the  Flock  st.  6. 
And  beauty  bom  of  murmuring  sound 
Shall  pass  into  her  face. 

Wordsworth  Three  Years  she  Grew  st.  6. 
I  have  made  a  miserable  botch  of  this  description. 
Hawthorne  Eng.  Note-Books,  Fumess  Abbey  in  vol.  1,  p.  220. 

Of  small  coral  about  her  arms  she  bare 
A  pair  of  beads,  gauded  all  with  green. 

Chaucer  C.  T,  Prologue  1. 158. 
[Note. — In  such  case,  out  of  is  often  used. 

Out  of  my  stony  griefs    Bethel  I'll  raise. 

Sarah  F.  Adams  Nearer,  my  God,  to  Thee  st.  4.] 

The  light  consisted  of  fifteen  Argand  lamps,  placed  within 
smooth  concave  reflectors  twenty-one  inches  in  diameter. 

Thoreau  in  American  Prose,  Highland  Light  p.  858. 

[Note.— For  the  phrases  consist  of  and  consist  in  see  Dis- 
tinctions under  of.] 


of  Prepositions  118 

Opposite  the  door  hung  a  target  of  hide,  round,  and  bossed 
with  brass.  MacDonald  Whafs  Mine's  Mine  ch.  7,  p.  47. 

(c)  From  as  by  division  or  selection  (answering  to  the  parti- 
tive genitive  of  Latin  and  other  languages) : 

(1)  As  by  division,  as  of  a  part  from  a  whole,  or  as  a  portion 
of  something  greater ;  as,  a  piece  of  bread ;  a  drink  of  water ;  to 
partake  of  food ;  he  has  none  of  it ;  does  he  want  all  of  it  ? 

I  pray  thee,  set  a  deep  glass  of  Rhenish  wine  on  the  contrary 
casket.     Shakespeare  The  Merchant  of  Venice  act  i,  sc.  2,  1.  95. 

[Note. — The  phrases  all  of  it,  all  of  this,  all  of  them,  all  of  you, 
etc.,  are  objected  to  by  some  critics.  Yet  the  usage  seems  to  be 
firmly  established  in  common  speech,  and  the  phrase  all  of  is  ex- 
actly parallel  to  the  phrase  the  whole  of,  and  logically  as  con- 
sistent. 

All  of  beauty  and  of  beatitude  we  conceive  and  strive  for, 
ourselves  are  to  be  sometime. 

A.  Bronson  Alcott  Concord  Days,  Ideals  p.  272. 

The  jury  have  returned  a  verdict  declaring  him  entitled  to 
the  whole  of  the  estates  at  Yatton. 

Cyrus  Townsend  Brady  Tittlebat  Titmouse  ch.  13,  p.  158. 

Yet  in  careful  speech  it  is  considered  better  to  say  "I  will 
take  it  all"  than  "I  will  take  all  of  it."] 

(2)  As  by  selection,  subtraction,  or  removal  from  a  group, 
class,  number,  etc. ;  from  among ;  among :  including  the  use  of 
of  after  a  superlative ;  as,  one  of  the  men ;  some  of  the  people ; 
one  of  many ;  the  best  of  books. 

[Note. — This  form  can  be  used  even  when  the  enumeration 
includes  the  whole  number  referred  to ;  as,  there  were  twenty 
of  us ;  that  is,  taking  the  whole  number  one  by  one,  there  would 
be  twenty.  Hence  arise  such  phrases  as  all  of  this  company. 
Compare  preceding  note  under  III.,  1  (c)  (1). 

Here  belong  such  phrases  as  of  mine,  of  his,  of  yours,  etc. , 
i.  e.y  among  those  that  are  mine,  his,  yours,  or  the  like— phrases 


I 


119  Defined  and  Illustrated  of 

sometimes  mistakenly  criticized  as  inaccurate,  but  which  are  in 
general  and  approved  use.  These  expressions  may  be  used  even 
with  reference  to  a  single  object ;  as,  **this  head  of  mine,"  that 
is  *•  o/  or  among  the  things  belonging  to  me."] 

And  he, — the  basest  of  the  base.    The  vilest  of  the  vile. 

Whittier  The  New  Year  st.  23. 

Ecclesiastical  tyranny  is  of  all  kinds  the  worst ;  its  fruits  are 
cowardice,  idleness,  ignorance,  and  poverty. 

Bancroft  United  States  vol.  i,  ch.  10,  p.  372. 

No  more  shall  grief  of  mine  the  season  wrong. 

Wordsworth  Intimations  of  Immortality  st.  3. 

Belongings,  as  an  old  expression  now  reinstated  in  its  former 
rights,  is  peculiar  to  the  very  latest  period  of  our  language. 
The  more  of  such  vernacularisms  we  call  up  from  the  past,  the 
better.  F.  Hall  Modem  English  ch.  8,  p.  307. 

Many  of  them  were  from  the  South,  and  could  not  bring 
themselves  to  the  point  of  accepting  the  'Force  Bill.' 

H.  C.  Lodge  Daniel  Webster  ch.  7,  p.  214. 

A  clearer  and  larger  apprehension  of  God. 

Storrs  Divine  Origin  of  Christianity  led.  ii,  p.  35. 

England,  the  most  calculative,  is  the  least  meditative,  of  all 
civilized  countries. 

Carlyle  Essays,  Characteristics  in  vol.  iii,  p.  39. 

Of  all  reading,  history  hath  in  it  a  most  taking  delight. 
C.  Mather  Magnalia  Christi  vol.  ii,  bk.  iv,  pt.  ii,  ch.  10,  p.  153. 

2.  Denoting  association,  connection,  or  possession: 

(a)  Connected  with  as  a  component  or  part,  quality  or  attri- 
bute ;  belonging  or  pertaining  to ;  made  by ;  possessed  by ;  help- 
ing to  form  or  complete;  characterizing;  as,  the  handle  of  a 
knife;  the  residence  of  the  senator;  the  length  of  his  arm;  the 
power  of  the  king;  a  sign  of  grief;  on  the  point  of  yielding. 

Thou  hast  the  right  arched  beauty  of  the  brow. 

Shakespeare  Merry  Wives  of  Windsor  act.  iii,  sc.  3. 


of  Prepositions  120 

Catholicism  obeys  the  orders  of  one  man,  and  has  therefore  a 
unity,  a  compactness,  a  power,  which  Protestant  denominations 
do  not  possess.      Draper  Conflict  between  Relig.  and  Set.  p.  329. 

The  building  and  arrangement  of  a  house  influence  the 
health,  the  comfort,  the  morals,  the  religion. 

Harriet  B.  Stowe  House  and  Home  Papers  No.  xi,  p.  272. 

It  has  never  been  questioned  that  the  doctrine  of  the  brother- 
hood of  mankind  and  of  the  duty  of  universal  benevolence  is  a 
main  feature  of  Christianity. 

J.  R.  Seeley  Ecce  Homo  pt.  ii,  ch.  15,  p.  188. 

The  dints  and  furrows  of  time's  envious  brunt. 

Lowell  The  Oak  st.  2. 

The  shrill  treble  of  the  squaws  mingles  not  discordantly  with 
the  guttural  tones  of  the  bucks. 

H.  R.  Lemly  in  Hafper's  Monthly,  Mar.,  1880  p.  499. 

That  fulgor  and  brightness  of  him  that  made  the  sun. 

Burton  Anat.  Melancholy  pt.  iii,  §  4,  p.  595. 

The  self-sacrifice  of  Leonidas,  the  good  faith  of  Regulus,  are 
the  glories  of  history. 

J.  Lubbock  Pleasures  of  Life  pt.  ii,  ch.  1,  p.  11. 

All  of  the  Indian  tribes  .  .  .  are  religious — are  worshipful. 
Catlin  N.  Am.  Indians  vol.  i,  letter  xxii,  p.  156. 

(6)  Having  as  an  attribute  or  quality,  feature,  function, 
characteristic,  or  the  like;  holding;  possessing;  marked  or  char- 
acterized by ;  as,  a  man  of  power ;  a  heart  of  adamant. 

The  Elizabethan  was  a  period  of  transition  in  the  history  of 
the  English  tongue. 

H.  E.  Shepherd  Hist.  Eng.  Lang.  ch.  20,  p.  166. 

DrusuB  .  .  .  was  ...  o/  so  cruel  a  temper,  that  a  peculiarly 
sharp  kind  of  swords  were  named  from  him  Drusians. 

Keightley  Roman  Empire  pt.  i,  ch.  3,  p.  64. 

The  President's  patronage  is,  in  the  hands  of  a  skilful  in- 
triguer, an  engine  of  far-spreading  potency. 

Bryce  American  Commonwealth  vol.  i,  pt.  i,  ch.  6,  p.  61. 

Full  big  he  was  of  brawn,  and  eke  of  bones. 

Chaucer  C.  T.  Prologue  1.  548. 


121  Defined  and  Illustrated  of 

Great  Hector  of  the  beamy  helm,  the  son 
Of  Priam,  led  the  Trojan  race. 

Homer  Iliad  tr.  by  Bryant,  bk.  ii,  1.  1025. 

(c)  Pertaining  to  as  an  object  of  desire,  right,  propriety, 
suitability,  need,  etc.;  as,  fond  o/ jewelry;  desirous  o/ gain; 
worthy  o/ praise. 

The  library,  the  museum,  the  aviary,  and  the  botanical  gar- 
den of  Sir  Thomas  Browne,  were  thought  by  Fellows  of  the 
Royal  Society  well  worthy  of  a  long  pilgrimage. 

Macaulay  England  vol.  i,  ch.  3,  p.  276. 

Surely  not  even  the  best  of  men  was  ever  entirely  worthy  of 
a  good  woman.  Maartens  The  Greater  Glory  ch.  38,  p.  277. 

I  am  not  fond  of  rectifying  legislative  mistakes  by  executive 
acts.  Washington  in  Sparks's  Writings  of  Washington  July  6, 
1796,  vol.  xi,  p.  137. 

Ugly  and  defoimed  people  have  great  need  o/ unusual  virtues. 
George  Eliot  Mill  on  the  Floss  bk.  v,  ch.  3,  p.  292. 

The  ruling  passion  of  an  Arab  is  greediness  of  gold,  which  he 
will  clutch  from  the  unarmed  stranger,  or  filch  from  an  unsus- 
pecting friend.  Lynch  Dead  Sea  and  Jordan  ch.  22,  p.  430. 

The  Count  .  .  .  was  a  bold  and  graceful  rider.  He  was  fond, 
too,  of  caracoling  his  horse. 

Irving  Crayon,  Tour  on  the  Prairies  ch.  7,  p.  41. 

The  boorish  driver  leaning  o'er  his  team 
Vociferous,  and  impatient  of  delay. 

Cowper  Task  bk.  i,  1.  298. 

We  never  tire  of  the  drama  of  sunset. 

Thoreau  Winter,  Jan.  7,  1852  p.  128. 

3.  In  general  reference  where  the  connection  may  even  be- 
come a  mere  indication :  in  respect  to ;  concerning ;  because  of ; 
about ;  at ;  as,  wonderful  things  are  told  of  him ;  to  hear  of  an 
event ;  to  talk  of  business ;  beware  of  the  dog ;  to  make  use  of 
opportunity ;  a  chance  of  success. 


of  Prepositions  122 

If  we  speak  of  temples  and  monuments,  the  stones  of  the 
Incas  remain,  but  the  Titans  that  piled  them  are  gone. 

BusHNELL  Moral  Uses  of  Dark  Things  ch.  4,  p.  93. 

Franklin  warned  you  a  hundred  years  ago  of  the  peril  of  be- 
ing divided  by  little,  partial,  local  interests.  Farrar  Sermons 
and  Addresses  in  America,  Farewell  Thoughts  p.  356. 

The  early  literature  of  Castile  could  boast  of  the  Poem  of  the 
Cid,  in  some  respects  the  most  remarkable  performance  of  the 
middle  ages.  Prescott  Ferdinand  and  Isabella  vol.  i,  p.  12. 

John,  like  Philip  of  Macedon,  made  use  of  gold  even  more 
than  arms,  for  the  reduction  of  his  enemies. 

Prescott  Ferdinand  and  Isabella  vol.  i,  pt.  i,  ch.  2,  p.  53. 

Bring  eke  with  you  a  bowl  or  else  a  pan    Full  of  water. 

CpAUCER  C.  T.y  Canon's  Yeoman's  Tale  I.  493. 

IV.  In  various  archaic  or  obsolete  senses,  which  for  the  prac- 
tical purposes  of  this  book  need  not  be  particularly  considered ; 
as,  tempted  of  the  devil ;  come  of  a  Sunday ;  it  has  been  so  of  a 
long  time. 

I  yet  am  unprovided    Of  a  pair  of  bases. 

Shakespeare  Pericles  act  ii,  sc.  1. 

But  why  of  two  oaths'  breach  do  I  excuse  thee. 

When  I  break  twenty !  Shakespeare  Sonnets  clii. 

I  et  her  great  Danube  rolling  fair 
Enwind  her  isles,  unmark'd  of  me. 

Tennyson  In  Memoriam  xcvii,  st.  3. 

That  he  might  joust  unknown  of  all,  and  learn 
If  his  old  prowess  were  in  aught  decay'd. 

Tennyson  Elaine  st.  26. 

Of  an  evening,  you  are  kind  to  the  most  unattractive  of  the 
wall-flowers.  Mitchell  Reveries  of  a  Bachelor  p.  118. 

A  hard  case  that  hereupon  I  should  be  justly  condemned  of 
sin.  Hooker  Ecclesiastical  Polity  bk.  ii,  p.  139. 

One  is  often  tempted  of  the  Devil  to  forswear  the  study  of 
history  altogether  as  the  pursuit  of  the  Unknowable.  A.  BiR- 
rell  Obiter  Dicta,  Rogue's  Memoirs  in  first  series,  p.  154. 


123  Defined  A^D  Illustrated  of 


It  is  only  0/ recent  years  that  ensilage,  i.  e.,  the  preservation 
of  green  food  for  cattle  by  partial  fermentation  in  silos,  has  be- 
come an  important  feature  in  agricultural  economy. 

Eneyc.  Brit.  9th  ed.,  vol.  xxii,  p.  67. 

Barking  dogs  sometimes  bite,  as  many  a  small  boy,  too  trust 
ful  of  the  proverb,  has  found  to  his  cost. 

T.  W.  HiGGiNSON  Out-Door  Papers,  Physical  Courage  p.  44. 

Columbus  had  an  immediate  audience  of  the  queen,  and  the 
benignity  with  which  she  received  him  atoned  for  all  past  neg- 
lect. Irving  Columbus  vol.  i,  bk.  ii,  ch.  7,  p.  117. 

And  unbreached  of  warring  waters  Athens  like  a  sea-rock  stands. 

Swinburne  Erechtheus  1.  1451. 

Verbs  and  Other  Antecedents 
Of  is  used  after  a  vast  number  of  verbs,  especially: 

(1)  Verbs  expressing  the  idea  of  separation  or  removal  of 
any  kind;  as,  acquit,  balk,  bereave,  break  (as  of  a.  habit),  cheat, 
cleanse,  clear,  cure,  defraud,  deliver,  deprive,  despair,  disap- 
point, disarm,  disburden,  discharge,  dispossess,  divest,  drain, 
ease  (as  of  a  load),  fail,  heal,  lighten,  miss  (as  of  a  prize), 
purge,  recover,  relieve,  rid,  rob,  shear,  spoil,  strip,  tire,  wean, 
weary,  and  many  others.  Some  of  these,  as  deliver,  recover, 
wean,  may  also  take  from, 

(2)  Verbs  conveying  some  idea  of  origin  or  source;  as,  be, 
come,  descend,  spring,  with  some  of  which  from  may  also  be 
used ;  as,  he  is  of  a  noble  family. 

(3)  Verbs  of  making  and  the  like,  with  reference  to  the  ma- 
terial used;  as,  build,  construct,  compose,  create,  form,  frame, 
make,  etc.     In  such  connection  out  of  is  frequently  used. 

(4)  Verbs  expressing  some  form  of  asking  or  seeking,  with 
reference  to  the  person  from  whom  something  is  asked  or 
sought ;  as,  ask  (of  me,  of  him,  etc. ) ,  beg,  beseech,  crave,  de- 
mand, desire,  entreat,  expect,  inquire,  request,  require,  seek^ 
want.  Deserve  and  merit  take  of  before  the  word  denoting  the 
pe-son  from  whom  reward  or  the  like  might  come. 


of  Prepositions  124 

(6)  Verbs  expressing  tlie  cause  or  occasion  of  an  activity,  a 
perception,  a  result,  etc. ;  as,  accuse,  arrest  (now  commonly  with 
fo7*),  heivare,  boast,  brag,  breathe,  complain,  die  (as  of  a  dis- 
ease), smell,  suspect,  taste,  etc. 

(6)  Verbs  of  learning  or  knowing;  as,  hear,  learn,  know,  etc. 

(7)  Verbs  of  instructing,  convincing,  reminding,  etc. ;  as, 
acquaint,  admonish,  advertise,  advise,  assure,  convict,  convince, 
inform,  instruct,  persuade,  remind,  warn,  etc. 

(8)  Verbs  of  thinking,  perceiving,  and  the  like;  as,  augur, 
dream,  hold,  judge,  think,  etc. 

(9)  Verbs  of  utterance  or  expression;  as,  murmur  (o/love  or 
other  deep  feeling,  ,but  at  or  against  restraint  or  oppression), 
say,  sing,  speak,  talk,  tell,  treat,  etc. 

(10)  Many  other  verbs,  especially  those  of  Romance  origin; 
as,  admit,  allow,  approve,  avail  (oneself  of),  dispose  (as  of  a 
matter),  and  the  like.  Some  of  these,  as  admit,  allow,  approve, 
may  take  instead  a  direct  object  without  a  preposition. 

Of  adjectives  followed  by  of  the  following  may  be  specified  : 

(1)  Adjectives  connected  with  the  verbs  already  mentioned; 
as,  dead,  free,  sick,  tired,  etc. 

(3)  Adjectives  denoting  some  mental  state,  as  of  attention, 
recollection,  etc.,  or  their  contraries  ;  as,  afraid,  ambitious, 
ashamed,  avaricious,  aware,  capable,  careful,  careless,  certain, 
confident,  conscious,  considerate,  desirous,  distrustful,  eager 
(commonly  with  for) ,  enamored,  envious,  fearful,  fearless,  fond, 
forgetful,  glad,  greedy,  heedful,  heedless,  hopeless,  ignorant,  im- 
patient, incapable,  indulgent,  insensible,  insusceptible,  jealous, 
mindfid,  neglectfid,  negligent,  observant,  patient,  prolific  (now 
oftener  with  in),  proud,  reckless,  regardless,  sensible,  studious, 
sure,  suspicious,  tender,  thoughtful,  thoughtless,  uncertain,  un- 
conscious, unmindful,  vain,  watchful,  and  many  others. 


125  Defined  and  Illustrated  of 

(3)  Adjectives  denoting  certain  moral  relations  ;  as,  guilt- 
less, guilty,  innocent,  worthy,  unworthy.  But  while  we  say 
worthy  of,  we  say  fit  for.  It  is  noticeable  that  while  we  use 
glad  with  of,  we  say  sorry  for,  considerate,  or  thoughtful  of; 
but  attentive  to  (compare  4)  or  indifferent  to ;  conscious  or  un- 
conscious of,  but  sensitive  to. 

(4)  Many  adjectives  in  -ive  derived  from  verbal  stems;  as, 
apprehensive,  descriptive,  destructive,  expressive,  indicative, 
jjroductive ;  but  attentive,  conducive,  relative,  and  others  are 
followed  by  to. 

Nouns  or  pronouns  without  number  may  be  followed  by  of, 
since  of  with  its  object  becomes  the  exact  equivalent  of  the  pos- 
sessive case,  " The  house  o/ John"  having  the  same  meaning  as 
''John's  house,"  though  in  reverse  order  of  statement.  The 
local,  descriptive,  and  partitive  uses,  as,  "A  citizen  of  Lon- 
don," ''A  man  of  wealth,"  "A  member  of  the  board,"  etc.,  extend 
the  range  of  such  employment  of  this  preposition  almost  with- 
out limit. 

Distinctions 

About — of— on :    See  Distinctions  under  on. 

By— from — of:  Of  was  formerly  used  indiscriminately  for 
almost  any  connection  of  thought,  but  is  now  greatly  restricted, 
so  that  in  modem  usage  we  say  tempted  by  the  devil ;  come  on  a 
holiday ;  it  has  been  so  for  a  long  time.  In  each  of  these  cases 
of  would  formerly  have  been  used.  Such  phrases  as  free  of, 
relieved  of,  are  still  in  good  use,  but  in  many  cases  fi^om  is  pre- 
ferred ;  as,  free  from  blame ;  relieved  fro7n  a  burden,  from  care, 
etc.  A  process  of  division  and  differentiation  is  going  on  here 
as  elsewhere,  working  toward  the  ideal  of  having  one  word  and 
one  only  to  stand  for  one  meaning. 

Consist  in  —  consist  of :  Consist  in  is  used  of  essence,  while 
co7isist  of  is  used  of  material;  virtue  consists  in  right  living; 
granite  consists  of  quartz,  feldspar,  and  mica. 


off 


Prepositions  126 


OFF 

Qffia  etymologically  the  same  as  of,  but  taking  especially  the 
meaning  away  from. 

Starting  with  the  idea  of  place,  noting  deviation,  separation, 
removal,  or  distance. 

1.  From;  distant  from;  separated  or  removed  from;  as,  the 
the  car  is  off  the  track;  as  easy  as  falling  o^a  log;  the  matter  is 
off  my  hands ;  off  dnty ;  off  one's  guard. 

Off  his  own  beat  his  opinions  were  of  no  value. 

Emerson  English  Traits  ch.  1,  p.  27. 

3.  Extending  away  from;  leading  out  of;  as,  Wall  Street 

leads  off  Broadway. 

Watling  Street,  Bow  Lane,  Old  Change,  and  other  thorough- 
fares off  Cheapside  and  Comhill. 

Mayhew  London  Labour  and  London  Poor  vol.  ii,  p.  201. 

3.  In  naatical  use,  opposite  and  to  seaward  of  at  a  short  dis- 
tance ;  as,  the  ship  lies  off  the  harbor ;  there  is  a  reef  six  miles 
off  shore. 

Add  to  this  the  gale  off  Point  Conception. 

R.  H.  Dana  Two  Years  before  the  Mast  ch.  11,  p.  53. 

On  a  low  island  of  barren  gneiss-rock  off  the  west  coast  of 
Scotland  an  Irish  refugee,  Columba,  had  raised  the  famous 
mission-station  of  lona.        Green  Hist.  Eng.  People  vol.  i,  p.  49. 

A  steamer  flying  signals  of  distress  had  been  sighted  off  that 
port.  New-York  Tribune  Oct.  15,  1891,  p.  1,  col.  1. 

4,  In  less  approved  use,  for  of  or  on ;  as,  to  dine  off  or  make 
a  meal  o^  sandwiches.  In  this  sense,  on  is  now  preferred.  Such 
expressions  as  "to  get  eggs  off  the  farmer,"  etc.,  are  distinctly 
vulgar  or  provincial.    Compare  on.  III.,  6. 

0]¥,   UPON 

On  is  derived  from  the  Anglo-Saxon  on,  an,  related  to  in. 
Upon  is  practically  identical  with  on  both  in  meaning  and  use. 

[Upon  now  differs  little  in  use  frc-m  on,  the  former  being 
sometimes  used  for  reasons  of  euphony  or  rhythm,  and  also 


127  Defined  and  Illustrated  on 

preferably  when  motion  into  position  is  involved,  the  latter 
when  merely  rest  or  support  is  indicated.  When  upon  has  its 
original  meaning  of  up  and  on,  that  is,  by  means  of  ascent  into  a 
relation  of  resting  or  support,  it  is  written  as  two  words,  up 
having  its  adverbial  force ;  as,  let  ns  go  up  on  the  roof. 

Standard  Dictionary.  \ 
I.  Of  place  or  space: 

1.  In  contact  with  the  upper  surface  of;  in  or  into  contact 
\sith  from  above ;  within  the  superficial  limits  of ;  above  and  sup- 
ported by;  as,  the  hair  on  one's  head;  the  people  on  the  earth; 
the  stones  fell  on  the  ground. 

Pepin  was  exalted  on  a  buckler  by  the  suffrage  of  a  free 
people,  accustomed  to  obey  his  laws  and  to  march  under  his 
standard.  Gibbon  Rome  vol.  v,  ch.  49,  p.  29. 

He  alighted  on  the  roof  .  .  .  and  bubbled  out  a  few  notes. 

Olive  T.  Miller  In  Nesting  Time  ch.  3,  p.  43. 

The  cattle  bellowed  on  the  plain. 

Bret  Harte  John  Burns  of  Gettysburg  st.  2. 

Wing-like  sails  on  her  bosom  gliding 
Bear  down  the  lily  and  drown  the  reed. 

Jean  Ingelow  Divided  vii,  st.  1. 

The  ceiling  [of  the  Library  at  Washington]  is  iron  and  glass, 
and  rests  on  foliated  iron  brackets  each  weighing  a  ton. 

Mary  Clemmer  Ames  Ten  Years  in  Washington  ch.  13,  p.  130. 

The  figure  [of  an  athlete],  being  in  a  sitting  posture,  had 

been  placed  on  a  stone  capital  of  the  Doric  order,  as  upon  a  stool. 

R.  Lanciani  in  Century  Magazine,  Feb.,  1887  p.  603. 

2.  So  as  to  be  supported  by,  as  in  suspension  or  the  like ;  as, 
the  fish  on  the  hook ;  the  fruit  on  the  tree.  [In  such  cases,  the 
weight  rests  on  the  point  of  support,  though  the  object  hangs 
below  it.     Compare  over,  I.,  3.] 

Aloft  on  the  stayless  verge  she  hung. 

Hogg  Queen's  Wake,  Abbot  MKinnon  st.  14. 

Loose  rock  and  frozen  slide,     Hung  on  the  mountain-side. 


on  Prepositions  128 

The  gooseberry  produces  fruit  buds  and  spurs  on  wood  two 
years  old.  P.  Barry  Fruit  Garden  pt.  iii,  ch.  2,  p.  262. 

So  the  dew    Globes  on  a  grass -blade. 

Edwin  Arnold  Light  of  the  World  bk.  v,  p.  223. 

Hundreds  of  dressed  deodar  logs  had  caught  on  a  snag  of 
rock,  and  the  river  was  bringing  down  more  logs  every  minute 
to  complete  the  blockade. 

Kipling  Mine  Own  People,  Namgay  Doola  p.  25. 

3.  In  such  a  position  as  to  cover,  overspread,  strike,  touch, 
or  be  attached  to  the  outside  of,  without  reference  to  elevation ; 
as,  nail  a  strip  on  the  under  side  of  the  box ;  he  would  bet  the 
shoes  on  his  feet. 

*  Bravo ! '  cried  Captain  Nutter,  rapping  on  the  table  encoura- 
gingly. ^    Aldrich  Story  of  a  Bad  Boy  ch.  16,  p.  180. 

Some  new  English  ballet  happened  to  be  on  the  boards. 

Aldrich  Queen  of  Sheba  ch.  2,  p.  28. 

As  the  gentle  dip  of  the  swallow's  wing 

Breaks  the  bubbles  on  the  sea.       Halleck  Love  st.  1. 

The  people  of  the  land  appeared  to  slumber ;  but,  like  vigilant 
and  wary  soldiers,  they  might  be  said  to  sleep  07i  their  arms. 

Cooper  Lionel  Lincoln  ch.  5,  p.  91. 

Great  storms  beat  on  this  beach,  and  on  the  cliffs  of  Nahant. 

A.  Lewis  Hist.  Lynn  ch.  1,  p.  10. 

When,  even  on  the  mountain's  breast, 
The  chainless  winds  were  all  at  rest. 

Bryant  Romero  int. ,  1.  25. 

Autographs  of  famous  names  were  to  be  seen  in  faded  ink  on 
some  of  the  flyleaves. 

Hawthorne  Mosses  from  an  Old  Manse  p.  28, 

4.  In  such  a  position  as  to  be  supported  and  borne  on  by; 
with  the  support  of;  by  means  of;  as,  to  travel  on  the  cars;  to 
go  on  all  fours. 

All  pale  extended  on  their  shields.     And  weltering  in  his  gore. 
Percy  Eeliques,  Hermit  of  Warkworth  fytte  ii,  st.  69. 


129  Defined  and  Illustrated  on 

The  next  year  Penn  himself  arrived  on  the  ship  Welcome 
with  one  hundred  emigrants,  mostly  Friends. 

A.  Oilman  American  People  ch.  7,  p.  39. 

Next  view  in  state,  proud  prancing  on  his  roan, 
The  golden-crested  haughty  Marmion. 

Byron  English  Bards  st.  12. 

People  of  every  age,  sex,  and  condition  were  borne  away  on 
the  tide  of  excited  feeling  that  swept  over  the  land. 

J.  S.  MosBY  War  Reminiscences  ch.  1,  p.  5. 

While  on  white  wings  descending  Houres  throng. 
And  drink  the  floods  of  odour  and  of  song. 

Erasmus  Darwin  Loves  of  the  Plants  can.  4,  1.  324. 

*  Who  comes  ? '    The  sentry's  warning  cry 
Rings  sharply  on  the  evening  air. 

Bret  Harte  The  Goddess  st.  1. 

PsToTE. — Here  belong  such  phrases  as  on  hoard  of,  sometimes 
shortened  to  on  hoard,  which  is  used  like  a  preposition  before  the 
object.    Compare  aboard. 

This  was  my  first  day's  duty  on  hoard  the  ship. 

R.  H.  Dana  Two  Years  hefore  the  Mast  ch.  23,  p.  137. 

The  stubborn  conservative  is  like  a  horse  on  hoard  a  ferry* 
boat.  The  horse  may  back,  but  the  boat  moves  on,  and  the  ani- 
mal with  it.     Greeley  in  Parton's  Horace  Greeley  ch.  21,  p.  280.] 

5.  In  the  relation  of  sequence  or  approach :  following  after; 
in  the  wake  of;  after;  drawing  near  to;  in  direction  or  move- 
ment along ;  as,  pestilence  followed  on  the  heels  of  famine ;  to 
press  upon  an  antagonist ;  to  move  on  (or  upon)  the  enemy ;  he 
is  on  the  way ;  on  (or  upon)  the  road. 

The  first  of  these  encroachments  on  the  monastic  spirit  was 
chivalry,  which  called  into  being  a  proud  and  jealous  military 
honour  that  has  never  since  been  extinguished. 

Lecky  Hist.  Eur.  Morals  vol.  ii,  ch.  4,  p.  199. 

Close  on  the  heels  of  the  straining  pack,  all  a-yell  up  the  hill. 
J.  Wilson  Christopher  North  fytte  i,  p.  15. 

Every  thing  dear  to  nations  was  wagered  on  both  sides. 

Macaulay  England  vol.  ii,  ch.  6,  p.  107. 
»  i 


on  Prepositions  130 

Slight  withal  may  be  the  things  which  bring 
Back  on  the  heart  the  weight  which  it  wonld  fling 
Aside  for  ever.  Byron  Childe  Harold  can  4,  st.  23, 

Now  fades  the  glimmering  landscape  on  the  sight, 
And  all  the  air  a  solemn  stillness  holds. 

Gray  Elegy  st.  2. 

6.  Near,  or  adjacent  to,  not  necessarily  multiplying  contact 
or  support;  at;  by;  near;  along;  as,  on  the  coast  of  Africa;  on 
the  border  of  the  stream. 

My  boat  is  on  the  shore,    And  my  bark  is  on  the  sea. 

Byron  Lines  to  Mr.  Moore  st.  1. 

In  city  walls,  .  .  .  where  there  is  a  superabundant  abutment 
on  either  hand  to  counteract  any  thrust,  the  horizontal  principle 
is  entirely  misplaced.  James  Fergusson  Hist.  Ind.  and  East. 
Arch.  bk.  ii,  ch.  2,  p.  211. 

I  advanced  forward,  and  cast  anchor  on  the  lee  side  of  the 
island.  Swift  Works,  Gulliver  pt.  i,  ch.  8,  p.  137. 

On  the  brow  o'  the  sea    Stand  ranks  of  people. 

Shakespeare  Othello  act  ii,  sc.  1. 

Victorious  banners  were  already  floating  on  the  margin  of 
the  Great  Desert.  De  Quincey  The  Ccesars  ch.  6,  p.  242. 

II.  Of  time: 

.    1.  Within  the  duration  of;  during  the  lapse  of;  as,  on  that 
•day  he  arrived. 

If  you  repay  me  not  on  such  a  day, 
In  such  a  place,  such  sum  or  sums. 

Shakespeare  Merchant  of  Venice  act.  1,  sc.  8. 

May  Heaven  augment  your  blisses. 
On  every  new  birthday  ye  see. 

Burns  A  Dream  st.  J. 

On  the  18th  day  of  March,  1864,  at  Nashville,  Tennessee,  I 
relieved  Lieutenant-General  Grant  in  command  of  the  Military 
Division  of  the  Mississippi. 

W.  T.  Sherman  Memoirs  vol.  ii,  ch.  15,  p.  5. 


131  Defined  and  Illustrated  on 

In  a  long  ramble  ...  on  a  fine  antumnal  day,  Rip  had  un- 
consciously scrambled  to  one  of  the  highest  parts  of  the  Kaats- 
kill  mountains.  Irving  Sketch-Book,  Rip  Van  Winkle  p.  51. 

On  this  sad  day  fell  the  flower  of  the  Aztec  nobility. 

Prescott  Meocico  vol.  ii,  bk.  iv,  ch.  8,  p.  283. 

[Note. — With  day,  time,  and  the  like,  on  is  often  omitted; 
as,  come  another  day. 

That  he  came  down  yesterday  was  no  guarantee  that  he 
would  do  it  next  time.  For  [on]  every  day  antecedent  and  con- 
sequent varied.  Drummond  Natural  Law  int.,  pt.  ii,  p.  39.] 

2.  At  the  exact  point  or  period  of;  as,  on  the  instant;  on  the 
stroke  of  twelve;  he  arrived  on  time  (i.  e.,  at  the  designated  or 
appointed  moment  of  time). 

The  sun  went  down  on  the  night  of  the  14th  of  February, 
1862,  leaving  the  army  confronting  Fort  Donelson. 

U.  S.  Grant  Personal  Memoirs  vol.  i,  ch.  22,  p.  303. 

The  first  natives  whom  Cortes  met  on  landing  in  Mexico 
were  the  Totonacos. 

D.  G.  Brinton  Am.  Race,  N.  Am.  Tribes  ch.  3,  p.  139. 

3.  At  the  moment  of,  and  in  connection  with  or  because  of; 
at ;  as,  on  the  assembling  of  Congress  the  controversy  began ;  on 
the  signal  he  arose ;  on  my  entrance  he  withdrew. 

On  the  death  of  their  kings  they  [the  Panebes]  bury  the 
bodies,  first  cutting  off  the  head,  which  they  enframe  in  gold 
and  offer  worship  to  it  in  a  temple.  Lenormant  Beginnings  of 
Hist.  tr.  by  Lockwood,  ch.  5,  p.  208,  note. 

But  if  on  a  temporary  superiority  of  the  one  party,  the  other 
is  to  resort  to  a  scission  of  the  Union,  no  federal  government 
can  ever  exist. 

Jefferson  in  Randall's  Thomas  Jefferson  vol.  ii,  ch.  9,  p.  447. 

Ori  a  review  of  this  whole  transaction,  two  topics  come  forth 

into  prominence,  the  *  name '  of  Jesus  and  *  faith '  in  that  name. 

HowsoN  Meditations  on  the  Miracles  ch.  13,  p.  275. 

III.  Of  various  relations,  more  or  less  closely  allied  to  the 
idea  of  position  above  in  space : 


on 


Prepositions  132 


1.  Having  as  a  foundation,  basis,  or  support;  by  means  of  or 
as  if  supported  or  upheld  by ;  sustained  or  confirmed  by ;  by  the 
authority  or  assurance  of;  as,  on  my  word;  he  was  appointed  on 
your  recommendation ;  to  make  oath  on  the  Bible. 

There  are  some  secrets,  on  the  keeping  of  which  depends 
oftentimes  the  salvation  of  an  army.  Washington  in  Sparks' s 
Writings  of  Washington,  Feb.  24,  1777  in  vol.  iv,  p.  330. 

Hildebrand  .  .  .  determined  to  lay  the  corner-stone  of  his 
great  structure  on  a  celibate  priesthood. 

T.  Starr  King  Substance  and  Show  lect.  v,  p.  206. 

Wrong  ever  builds  on  quicksands. 

Lowell  Prometheus  st.  2. 

I  never  yet  saw  a  banker  who  charged  on  paper  more  than 
one  per  cent.,  anji  yet  through  thimble-rigging  of  piastres,  I 
somehow  never  get  but  about  nineteen  pounds  sterling  on  a 
draft  of  twenty. 

J.  P.  Thompson  Photographic  Views  of  Egypt  ch.  2,  p.  17. 

Nothing  is  more  injurious  in  science  than  assumptions  which 
do  not  rest  on  a  broad  basis  of  fact. 

Agassiz  Geol.  Sketches  sketch  vi,  p.  154. 

The  destinies  of  the  human  race  were  staked  on  the  same 
cast  with  the  freedom  of  the  English  people. 

Macaulay  Essays,  Milton  p.  10. 

2.  In  consequence  of;  depending  upon;  having  as  a  reason 
or  ground;  by  reason  of;  because  of;  in  accordance  with;  as,  on 
certain  conditions ;  he  did  it  on  purpose. 

After  the  worship  was  ended,  Haliday  made  up  to  the  minis- 
ter, among  many  others,  to  congratulate  him  on  the  splendour 
of  his  discourse.  Hogg  Tales  in  vol.  i,  p.  319. 

The  arrest  of  Shaftesbury  on  a  charge  of  suborning  false  wit- 
nesses to  the  Plot  marked  the  new  strength  of  the  Crown. 

Green  Short  Hist.  Eng.  People  ch.  9,  §  5,  p.  640. 

The  Carlovingian  crown  may  indeed  be  said  to  have  been 
worn  on  the  tenure  of  continual  conquests. 

James  Stephen  Lect.  on  France  lect.  iii,  p.  67. 


133  Defined  and  Illustrated  on 

I  think  that,  if  required,  on  pain  of  death,  to  name  instantly 
the  most  perfect  thing  in  the  universe,  I  should  risk  my  fate  on 
a  bird's  egg.  T.  W.  Higginson  Out-Door  Papers  p.  297. 

I  .  .  .  was  felicitating  myself  on  occupying  one  of  the  best 
positions  in  the  House. 

Holmes  Our  Hundred  Days  in  Europe  ch.  2,  p.  97. 

[Hence  such  prepositional  phrases  as,  on  the  part  of,  on  ao- 
count  of. 

This  occasioned  great  excitement,  much  caucusing  and  threat- 
ening on  the  part  of  the  Southern  members,  but  nothing  else. 

NicoLAY  AND  Hay  Abraham  Lincoln  vol.  i,  ch.  16,  p.  286. 

On  account  of  its  indestructibility,  gold  was  regarded  by  the 
earlier  chemists  as  the  king  of  metals. 

Eliot  and  Storer  Inorganic  Chemistry  §  505,  p.  282.] 

3.  In  or  into  a  state  or  condition  of;  in  the  act  or  process  of; 
occupied  with;  as,  on  guard;  on  duty;  on  fire;  on  record;  on 
the  contrary ;  on  the  whole. 

On  an  average  a  strong  gale  moves  at  the  rate  of  40  miles  an 
hour,  a  storm  at  about  56  and  hurricanes  at  90. 

Mary  Somerville  Physical  Oeog.  ch.  21,  p.  287. 

The  barbarous  pit. 
Fanatical  on  hearsay,  stamp  and  shout 
As  if  a  miracle  could  be  encored. 

Lowell  The  Cathedral  st.  10. 

In  this  case  the  ship  would  be  brought  to  on  the  starboard 
tack.  James  Smith  Voyage  of  St.  Paul  ch.  3,  p.  107. 

Candidates  were  received  on  trial. 

Abel  Stevens  Hist.  Methodism  vol.  11,  bk.  v,  ch.  10,  p.  282. 

His  guest  did  not  bore  the  viceroy.  On  the  contrary,  he 
amused  him.  Kipling  Plain  Tales,  Germ  Destroyer  p.  84. 

On  the  whole,  no  possible  resource  seems  so  little  burdensome 
as  this  betterment  tax. 

J.  Rae  in  Contemporary  Review  May,  1890,  p.  660. 

4.  Connected  with  so  as  to  form  part  of  or  be  attached  or 
appended  to;  comprised  in;  attached  to;  being  a  dependent  or 


on 


Prepositions  1 34 


attendant  of;  engaged  in  the  making  of;  as,  he  was  on  the  gen- 
eral's staff;  he  is  on  the  commission;  a  laborer  on  the  public 
works. 

Tendant  on  each  knight, 
Rode  many  a  page  and  armor-bearer  bold. 
Tasso  Jerusalem  Delivered  tr.  by  Wiffen,  can.  2,  st.  57. 

You  will  find  them  at  the  head  of  their  respective  classes,  in 
the  days  when  students  took  rank  on  the  catalogue  from  their 
parents'  condition.  Holmes  Autocrat  ch.  1,  p.  24. 

If  any  degree  on  the  Centigrade  scale,  either  above  or  below 
zero,  be  multiplied  by  1.8,  the  result  will,  in  either  case,  be  the 
number  of  degrees  above  or  below  32**,  or  the  freezing  point  of 
Fahrenheit.  L^.  S.  Dispensatory  p.  1996. 

He  was  .  .  .  si,de -tackle  on  his  college  foot-ball  team. 

New-York  Tribune  Oct.  20,  1891,  p.  5,  col.  4. 

5.  Having  as  a  goal,  end,  or  object:  with  reference  to;  at- 
tending to;  directed  toward;  toward;  against;  as,  to  dote  on 
(or  upon)  a  child ;  to  make  war  on  (or  upon)  an  enemy ;  to  go  on 
(or  upon)  an  errand. 

[Note. — In  such  cases  the  tendency  is  to  use  upon  in  refer- 
ence to  that  which  is  more  spiritual,  solemn,  or  formal,  and  on 
in  reference  to  the  ordinary  and  commonplace.  We  should  ordi- 
narily say,  she  dotes  upon  that  child ;  I  am  going  on  an  errand ; 
to  make  war  upon  the  pirates.  Yet  this  is  not  an  invariable 
rule,  as  the  shorter  form  may  be  preferred  for  force  and  vigor 
with  reference  to  the  greatest  matters;  as,  *'on  God  and  godlike 
men  we  build  our  trust."] 

Like  schoolboys  of  old  at  a  barring  out,  the  Virginians  re- 
sisted their  government,  not  as  ready  for  independence,  but  as 
resolved  on  a  holiday.  Bancroft  U.  S.  vol.  iii,  ch.  19,  p.  30. 

Birth,  wealth,  genius,  and  virtue  could  not  have  been  be- 
stowed in  such  eminent  degree  on  any  man  without  carrying 
with  them  the  determination  to  assert  their  value. 

Motley  Dutch  Republic  vol.  i,  pt.  ii,  ch.  5,  p.  441. 


135  Defined  and  Illustrated  on 

And  blushed  as  she  gave  it,  looking  down 
On  her  feet  so  bare,  and  her  tattered  gown. 

Whittier  Maud  Muller  st.  11. 

Our  duty  is  to  take  all  reasonable  pains  before  we  bestow 
money  or  material  aid  on  persons  unknown. 

Gladden  Applied  Christianity y  Social  Science  p.  225. 

Napoleon's  tactics  of  marching  on  the  angle  of  an  army,  and 
always  presenting  a  superiority  of  numbers,  is  the  orator's  secret 
also.  Emerson  Society  and  Solitude  p.  73. 

My  eye  dwelt  with  delight  on  neat  cottages,  with  their  trim 
shrubberies  and  green  grass  plots. 

Irving  Sketch-Book,  The  Voyage  p.  23. 

6,  Having  or  using  as  a  means  of  sustenance,  activity,  or 
the  like ;  as,  to  live  on  vegetables ;  to  batten  on  garbage.  Com- 
pare OFF,  4 

Were  the  sums  which  are  still  lavished  on  ardent  spirits  ap- 
propriated wisely  to  the  elevation  of  the  people,  what  a  new 
world  we  should  live  in !    Channino  Works,  Labor.  Classes  p.  58. 

The  pitcher -plant  is  carnivorous,  and  thrives  on  animal  diet. 
C.  Van  Norden  Outermost  Rim  ch.  3^  p.  36. 

A  young  girl  betrays,  in  a  moment,  that  her  eyes  have  been 
feeding  on  the  face  where  you  find  them  fixed. 

Holmes  Professor  ch.  7,  p.  196. 

The  young  lady  who  dines  heartily  on  lamb  has  a  sentimental 
horror  of  the  butcher  who  killed  it. 

R.  HiLDRETH  The  White  Slave  ch.  5,  p.  21. 

The  hero  is  not  fed  on  sweets.     Daily  his  own  heart  he  eats. 

Emerson  Heroism  1.  7. 

We  are  literary  cannibals,  and  our  writers  live  on  each  other 
and  each  other's  productions  to  a  fearful  extent. 

Holmes  Over  the  Teacups  ch.  2,  p.  23. 

7.  Noting  addition  or  accumulation :  added  to ;  as,  thousands 

on  thousands. 

And  every  wimpling  wavelet  of  the  sea 
Rolled  a  white  edge  of  silver  on  the  gloom. 

Edwin  Arnold  Light  of  the  World  bk.  i,  p.  99. 


on 


Prepositions  136 


Verbs  and  Other  Antecedents 
On  (or  upon)  is  used  after  : 

(1)  Verbs  denoting  dependence;  as,  attend,  calculate,  count, 
depend,  reckon,  rely,  repose,  rest,  wait.  Believe  and  trust  were 
formerly  used  with  on  or  upon,  but  are  now  used  with  in, 

(2)  Verbs  of  giving,  imparting,  inflicting,  and  the  like;  as, 
bestow,  confer,  enjoin,  entail,  expend,  inculcate,  inflict,  lavish, 
waste,  etc. 

(3)  Verbs  denoting  action  directed  toward  some  object;  as, 
call,  look,  smile,  etc.  So  a  pursuer  is  said  to  gain  on  or  upon  a 
fugitive,  or  a  fencer  or  boxer  to  press  on  or  upon  his  antagonist, 
a  battalion  to  charge  or  move  on  or  upon  the  enemy.  We  say  to 
fight  with  or  against,  but  to  make  war  on  or  upon  (also  against) 
an  enemy.  To  fall  on  or  upon  is  used  of  attack  which  tends  to 
demolish  its  object.  Bet,  pledge,  venture  also  take  on  or  upon 
with  the  underlying  idea  of  direction  toward,  perhaps  also  of 
dependence  upon. 

(4)  Verbs  of  sustenance ;  as,  batten,  fatten,  feed,  live,  thrive, 
etc. 

Adjectives  derived  from  or  expressing  the  ideas  of  the  verbs 
above  cited  take  on  or  upon;  as,  attendant,  dependent,  etc. 
Addition,  accumulation,  crowding,  etc.,  are  denoted  by  on  or 
upon,  whose  antecedent  may  be  either  verb,  adjective,  or  noun. 

Distinctions 
About — of— on — upon:    A  person  speaks  of  another  if  he 
merely  mentions  his  name,  or  o/a  topic  to  which  he  incidentally 
refers.     That  which  he  speaks  about  he  treats  more  at  length. 
He  tells  some  story  about  a  person  or  expresses  some  opinion 
about  a  person  or  thing.     But  about  commonly  has  a  suggestion 
of  discursiveness;  the  most  fragmentary,  random,  careless,  or 
incomplete  talk  or  writing  may  be  made  about  a  matter.     Press- 
ing this  suggestion  to  the  extreme.  Pope  writes : 
Explain  a  thing  till  all  men  doubt  it, 
And  write  about  it,  Goddess,  and  about  it. 

Dunciad  bk.  iv,  st.  1,  1.  252. 


137  Defined  and  Illustrated  out 

That  is,  go  round  and  round  the  subject  without  ever  reach- 
ing its  heart  or  essence.  But  a  speech  or  treatise  on  or  iipon  a 
subject  is  supposed  to  be  methodical  and  somewhat  complete, 
perhaps  even  exhaustive;  as,  the  President  sent  to  Congress  a 
special  message  on  reciprocity  with  Cuba. 

OUT,   OUT  OF 

Out  as  a  preposition  is  colloquial  or  obsolete ;  as,  to  fall  out 
the  window.  The  phrase  out  of  is  now  preferably  used.  The 
chief  uses  of  this  phrase  are : 

!•  Denoting  source  or  origin:  proceeding  from;  from. 

I  am  a  word  out  of  the  speechless  years. 

The  tongue  of  time,  that  no  man  sleeps  who  hears. 

Swinburne  Tiresias  pt.  i,  st.  22. 

His  nature  had  attributes  as  glorious  as  the  music  bom  out  of 
them.  W.  R.  Alger  Solitudes,  Beethoven  p.  268. 

Certificates  are,  for  the  most  part,  like  ostrich  eggs ;  the  giver 
never  knows  what  is  hatched  out  of  them. 

Holmes  Elsie  Venner  ch.  2,  p.  32. 

Out  of  too  much  learning  become  mad.  Burton  Anatomy  of 
Melancholy  pt.  iii,  §  4,  memb.  1,  subsec.  2,  1.  652. 

The  science  of  anatomy  has  grown  almost  wholly  out  of  the 
exposure  of  the  frame  to  suffering. 

Channing  Works,  Death  of  Dr.  Follen  p.  608. 

A  genuine  antique,  fished  up,  .  .  .  out  of  the  wreck  of  the 
old  world.  Froude  Short  Studies,  Dissolution  of  Monasteries 
first  series,  p.  338. 

Dipping  the  jewels  out  of  the  sea, 
To  sprinkle  them  over  the  land  in  showers. 

Aldrich  Before  the  Rain  st.  2. 

2,  Denoting  material,  substance,  or  the  like :  of. 

It  is  the  office  of  high  art  to  create  music  out  o/ sound,  poetry 
out  of  words,  beauty  out  of  colors,  and  form  out  of  matter. 

J.  PuLSFORD  Supremacy  of  Man  bk.  ii,  ch.  3,  p.  84. 

You  cannot  make  an  association  out  of  insincere  men. 

Carlyle  Heroes  and  Hero-Worship  led.  iv,  p.  150 


out  of  Pb«positions  138 

Syllabism,  the  next  stage  in  the  progress  of  writing,  finds  its 
best  illustration  in  the  development  of  the  Japanese  writing  out 
of  the  Chinese.     Isaac  Taylor  The  Alphabet  vol.  i,  ch.  1,  p.  83. 

S.  Denoting  separation:  away  from;  from;  outside  of; 
beyond. 

He  spent  his  last  years  in  his  own  Land  of  Beulah,  Doubting 
Castle  out  of  sight,  and  the  towers  and  minarets  of  Emmanuel 
L3,nd  growing  nearer  and  clearer  as  the  days  went  on. 

Froude  John  Bunyan  ch.  6,  p.  86. 

Specialists  who  never  look  beyond  their  own  domain  are  apt 
to  see  things  out  of  true  proportion. 

A.  Marshall  Principles  of  Economics  vol.  i,  bk.  i,  ch.  5,  p.  72. 

Resistance  to  a  Turk  is  now,  and  has  for  generations  been,  so 
certain  to  end  in  assassination,  that  thought  of  resistance  has 
almost  died  out  of  the  Christian  mind. 

D.  S.  Gregory  in  Princeton  Review  Jan. ,  1878,  p.  69. 

London  out  of  season  seemed  still  full  of  life ;  Paris  out  of 
season  looked  vacuous  and  torpid. 

Holmes  Our  Hundred  Days  ch.  7,  p.  271. 

So  here  shall  silence  guard  thy  fame ; 

But  somewhere  out  of  human  view. 

Whate'er  thy  hands  are  set  to  do 
Is  wi'ought  with  tumult  of  acclaim. 

Tennyson  In  Memoriam  Ixxiv,  st.  5 

Oloster :  The  state  is  out  of  tune ;  distracting  fears, 
And  jealous  doubts,  jar  in  our  public  councils. 

RowE  Jane  Shore  act  iii. 

My  old  Friend  started,  and  recovering  out  of  his  brown  study, 
told  Sir  Andrew,  that  once  in  his  life  he  had  been  in  the  right. 

BuDGELL  Spectator  Apr.  22, 1712. 

It  is  not  in  human  nature  to  wink  wholly  out  of  sight  the  rights 
of  a  fellow-creature.  Channing  Woi^ks,  Slavery  ch.  2,  p.  704. 

Take  a  brute  out  of  his  instinct,  and  you  find  him  wholly 
deprived  of  understanding.         Addison  Spectator  July  18, 1711. 

She  had  twelve  intimate  and  bosom  friends  out  o/the  twenty- 
four  young  ladies.  Thackeray  Vanity  Fair  p.  10. 


1*39  DEFINED  AND  ILLUSTRATED  outside 

OUTSIDE 

Outside  is  a  modem  word  compoimded  of  out  and  side. 
On  or  to  the  exterior  of;  beyond  the  limit  of;  from;  out  of; 
without ;  as,  persons  waiting  outside  the  gate. 

[The  adverb  with  of,  outside  of,  is  in  very  common  use.] 

Outside  his  own  domain,  and  unprotected,  he  was  a  very  sheep 
for  the  shearers.  He  would  have  taken  his  gaiters  off  his  legs, 
to  give  away.  Dickens  David  Copperfleld  ch.  16,  p.  119. 

Antiquity,  outside  the  Jewish  world,  had  no  conception  of 
what  we  call  sin.  Geikie  Life  of  Christ  ch.  1,  p.  7. 

OYER 

Over  is  derived  from  the  Anglo-Saxon  ofer,  having  the  gen- 
eral meaning  of  above.  It  is  often,  especially  in  poetry,  abbre- 
viated to  o'er. 

I.  Of  place  or  space  : 

1.  Vertically  above ;  higher  than ;  hanging  or  seeming  to 

hang,  rest,  or  move  above,  or  look  down  upon;  as,  the  sky  is 

over  our  heads ;  it  is  good  to  have  a  roof  over  us ;  the  cliff  hangs 

over  the  sea. 

Where  the  katydid  works  her  chromatic  reed 
On  the  walnut-tree  over  the  well. 
Walt  Whitman  Leaves  of  Grass  pt.  xxxiii,  st.  196. 

The  golden-rod  and  the  aster  hung  their  plumage  over  the 
rough,  rocky  road.  H.  B.  Stowe  Oldtown  Folks  ch.  8,  p.  102. 

There  rose  over  the  forecastle  bulwarks,  not  the  broad  hats 
of  peaceful  buscarles,  but  peaked  helmets. 

KiNGSLEY  Hereward  ch.  6,  p.  84. 

The  arms  of  the  family,  carved  in  freestone,  frowned  over 
the  gateway.  Scott  Guy  Mannering  ch.  4,  p.  24. 

[Note. — For  the  phrase  over  one's  signature,  etc.,  contrasted 
with  under  one's  signature,  etc.,  see  under,  III.,  5,  note.] 

2.  Upon  the  surface  or  exterior  of,  without  special  reference 
to  elevation,  so  as  to  cover  or  protect ;  as,  to  put  an  outer  coat 
over  one's  other  garments. 


over 


Prepositions  140 


[The  same  idea  controls  in  such  componnds  as  overalls,  over- 
shoes, etc.] 

Ot'er  his  tunic  flowed  a  loose  eastern  robe,  .  .  .  glowing  in 
the  richest  hues  of  the  Tyrian  dye. 

BuLWER  Lytton  Last  Days  of  Pompeii  bk.  v,  ch.  1,  p.  335. 

Over  her  breast  she  wore  a  stomacher  of  cloth  of  gold. 

HowELLS  Venetian  Life  ch.  19,  p.  309. 

3.  Upon  in  such  a  way  as  to  be  supported  by  or  suspended 

from;  as,  to  sling  a  musket  over  one's  shoulders;  to  throw  a 

cloak  over  one's  arm.     (Compare  on,  I.,  2.) 

Shocks  of  yellow  hair,  like  the  silken  floss  of  the  maize,  hung 
Over  his  shoulders.  Longfellow  Evangeline  pt.  iii,  1.  3. 

4.  So  as  to  pass  or  extend  across ;  in  motion  above  or  on  the 
surface  of ;  so  as  to,  occupy  a  position  on  the  farther  side  of ;  so 
as  to  pass  across ;  across ;  as,  to  leap  over  a  wall ;  to  sail  over  a 
lake ;  to  dash  water  over  a  window-pane. 

The  shallow  fishing -boat  glides  safely  over  the  reefs  where 
the  noble  bark  strands. 

Robertson  Sermons  second  series,  ser.  xv,  p.  368. 

5,  Reaching  to  a  higher  point  than,  so  as  to  rise  above,  cover, 

or  submerge ;  as,  the  water  is  over  -niy  shoes. 

A  man  may  go  over  shoes  in  the  grime  of  it. 

Shakespeare  Comedy  of  Errors  act  iii,  sc.  2,  1.  104. 

6,  Here  and  there  upon ;  traversing  the  surface  of ;  throughout 
the  extent  of ;  touching,  affecting,  or  noting  many  points  through- 
out the  whole  extent  of;  as,  to  wander  over  the  world;  the  mud 
was  splashed  over  the  garment ;  to  glance  over  a  document. 

The  English  language  is  fast  being  diffused  over  the  whole 
earth.  Hollis  Read  Hand  of  God  in  Hist.  ch.  9,  p.  162. 

Not  a  day  passes  over  the  earth,  but  men  and  women  of  no 

note  do  great  deeds,  speak  great  words,  and  suffer  noble  sorrows. 

Charles  Reade  Cloister  and  Hearth  ch.  1,  p.  5. 

Light  as  an  elf. 
Or  wisp  that  flits  o'er  a  morass. 

Byron  Vision  of  Judgment  st.  105. 


141  Defined  and  Illustrated  over 

II.  Of  time  .  during  the  continuance  of ;  throughout  the 
duration  of;  to  the  end  of  and  beyond;  as,  to  stay  overnight; 
to  keep  seed-corn  over  winter. 

If  any  thing  be  wanting  for  a  smith,  let  it  be  done  over  night. 
Swift  Directions  to  Sei^ants,  Works  vol.  vi. 

III.  Of  various  relations,  often  closely  analogous  to  the 
meanfngs  respecting  place  : 

1.  In  higher  power,  authority,  or  station  than;  in  command 
or  control  of ;  with  authority  as  to ;  as,  the  senior  officer  takes 
rank  over  the  junior ;  he  placed  a  colonel  over  the  regiment. 

And  he  said  unto  him  that  was  over  the  vestry,  Bring  forth 
vestments  for  all  the  worshippers  of  Baal.  £  Kings  x,  22. 

The  less  of  power  given  to  man  over  man,  the  better. 

Channing  WorkSy  Introductory  Remarks  p.  9. 

2.  In  higher  estimation,  excellence,  dignity,  or  value  than; 
in  superiority  to ;  surpassing ;  as,  the  advantages  of  the  educated 
over  the  ignorant. 

The  advantage  which  old  persons  possess  over  young  ones  is 
experience.  Lieber  Pol.  Eth.  vol.  ii,  bk.  iii,  ch.  7,  p.  105. 

3.  With  srTpremacy  above,  as  the  result  of  opposition,  con- 
test, or  controversy ;  in  spite  of ;  notwithstanding ;  as,  to  triumph 
over  one's  enemies;  to  exult  over  the  vanquished;  to  be  victo- 
rious over  temptation. 

Could' st  thou  boast,  O  child  of  weakness ! 
O'er  the  sons  of  wrong  and  strife, 
/'       Were  their  strong  temptations  planted 
In  thy  path  of  life  ? 

Whittier  What  the  Voice  Said  st.  8. 

Revenge  triumphs  over  death ;  love  slights  it ;  honour  aspireth 
to  it.  Bacon  Works,  Essays,  Of  Death  p.  262. 

4.  With  consideration  of  or  concern  about;  with  solicitude 
for;  with  reference  to;  about;  concerning;  as,  to  watch  over 
one's  children;  to  grieve  over  the  past;  to  talk  over  one's  afi^irs; 
to  fret  over  trifles. 


over      Prepositions  Defined  and  Illustrated       142 

The  king, 
His  brother,  and  yours,  abide  all  three  distracted, 
And  the  remainder  mourning  over  them. 

Shakespeare  The  Tempest  act  v,  sc.  1,  1.  13. 

I  chatter  over  stony  ways,    In  little  sharps  and  trebles. 

Tennyson  The  Brook  st.  6. 

5.  Reaching  above  or  beyond  in  quantity  or  amount ;  in 
excess  of;  more  than;  as,  over  $1,000. 

[In  this  sense  the  expression  more  than  is  generally  prefer- 
able. Standard  Dictionary.!^ 

Madame  de  Villedeuil  became  indebted  to  Madame  Eloffe  to 
the  extent  of  over  two  hundred  livres  for  a  presentation  dress. 

Fortnightly  Review  vol.  xlii,  p.  287. 

6,  Pending  the  enjoyment  or  participation  of;  while  engaged 

in  or  partaking  of;  as,  the  bargain  was  made  over  a  bottle  of 

wine. 

Capulet :       Peace,  you  mumbling  fool ! 
Utter  your  gravity  o'er  a  gossip's  bowl. 
For  here  we  need  it  not. 
Shakespeare  Romeo  and  Juliet  act  iii,  sc.  5, 1. 173. 

I  am  certain  that  nothing  can  be  truly  imputed  to  me  beyond 
some  foolish  talk  over  a  bottle. 

Macaulay  England  vol.  ii,  p.  398. 


X— Prepositions  Defined  and  Illustrated 

PARTICIPIAL.  PREPOISITIOIVS 

Many  participles,  as  barring,  bating,  concerning,  considering, 
during,  excepting,  notwithstanding,  past,  pending,  regarding,  re 
specting,  saving,  touching,  etc. ,  are  used  without  direct  connec 
tion  with  a  subject,  and  with  the  force  of  prepositions ;  as,  I  spoke 
with  him  concerning  this.  Verbal  or  prepositional  phrases  may 
often  be  substituted  for  these  terms ;  thus,  as  concerns  may  be 
used  for  concerning ;  in  consideration  of  for  considering ;  as  re- 
gards, in  or  urith  regard  to  for  regarding ;  as  respects,  in  or  with 
respect  to  for  respecting. 

Concerning  may  be  exactly  rendered  by  about,  though  not 
coextensive  with  the  latter  word.     Considering  is  commonly 
used  in  a  depreciatory  sense,  implying  allowance  for  or  deduc 
tion  of  the  things  considered;  as,  he  did  well  considering  his 
age,  or  considering  the  difficulties  he  had  to  meet. 

See  DURING,  PAST,  PENDING  in  alphabetical  place. 

See  EXCEPTING  under  except  and  saving  under  save. 

Notwithstanding  is  used  as  a  preposition  by  a  reversal  of  the 
participial  construction.  Thus,  **  He  arrived,  all  hindrances  no^ 
withstanding''  becomes  prepositionally,  "He  arrived  notwith- 
standing all  hindrances." 

In  answer  to  the  question  sometimes  raised,  whether  in 
regard  to  and  in  respect  to  are  correct  expressions,  or  whether 
with  regard  to,  with  respect  to  should  not  be  preferred,  it  should 
be  said,  first,  that  in  regard  to  and  in  respect  to  are  accepted 
idiomatic  expressions  used  by  the  best  writers  and  speakers ;  and, 
secondly,  that  in  in  such  expressions  is  not  used  in  the  sense  of 
inclusion,  but  of  reference  or  relation,  as  in  the  phrase  in  relation 
to.  In  in  such  phrases  might  almost  be  rendered  by  having ;  as, 
having  reference,  relation,  etc.,  to. 

(143) 


past  Prepositions  144 

PAST 

Pastf  originally  the  past  participle  of  the  verb  pass,  has  ac- 
quired such  complete  independence  of  its  verb  that  it  may 
well  be  treated  independently  as  a  preposition. 

I.  Of  place  or  space:  beyond  in  position;  farther  than;  by 
and  beyond ;  by ;  as,  I  walked  past  the  house ;  we  have  gone 
past  the  gate. 

Past  the  pebbly  beach  the  boat  did  flee 
On  sidelong  wing  into  a  silent  cove. 

Shelley  Revolt  of  Islam  can.  3,  st.  34. 

Friedrich  brushes  past  the  Liegnitz  Garrison,  leaves  Liegnitz 
and  it  a  trifle  to  the  right. 

Carlyle  Frederick  vol.  v,  bk.  xviii,  ch.  9,  p.  186. 

II.  Of  time ;  to  or  at  a  later  period  than ;  later  than ;  beyond ; 
after ;  as,  it  is  past  noon ;  it  is  past  the  hour. 

What  is  the  time  o'  the  day  ? 
Art. :  Past  the  mid  season. 

Shakespeare  The  Tempest  act.  i,  sc.  2,  1.  239. 

I  received  them  handsomely  at  haUpast  seven,  as  the  modern 
English  now  is.  John  Hoadley  in  Garrick's  Private  Corre- 
spondence, Letter  of  Sept.  19,  1773. 

III.  In  general:  beyond  the  reach,  scope,  influence,  or  en- 
joyment of;  as,  past  endurance ;  past  hope ;  past  remedy. 

The  Dog-star  rages !  nay,  'tis  past  a  doubt. 
All  Bedlam,  or  Parnassus,  is  let  out. 

Pope  Epistle  to  Dr.  Arhuthnot  1.  3. 

PEIVDIIVO 

Pending,  though  strictly  the  present  participle  otpend,  await, 
is  used  so  independently  of  its  verb  as  to  require  special  treat- 
ment as  a  preposition. 

Of  time  exclusively : 

1.  During  the  continuance  of;  during;  in  the  period  covered 
by;  as,  pending  debate. 


145  Defined  and  Illustrated  per 

However,  he  locked  him  up  and  had  him  sent  to  the  West 
Side  Court  yesterday  morning,  where  he  was  held  pending  in- 
vestigation of  his  statement  of  forgery. 

The  New  York  Times  Nov.  16, 1903. 

2.  During  the  time  intervening  before;  while  expecting  or 
awaiting ;  as,  pending  decision. 

The  court  met  and  adjourned  pending  the  receipt  of  orders 
from  the  convening  authority. 

Charles  King  Two  Soldiers  ch.  17,  p.  118. 

Pending  the  rule  for  the  new  trial,  Mr.  Quirk  greatly  in- 
creased the  allowance  of  Titmouse. 

Cyrus  Townsend  Brady  Tittlebat  Titmouse  ch.  xv,  p.  171. 

PER 

Per  is  a  Latin  preposition  signifying  by,  by  means  of,  through. 
It  is  correctly  used  as  part  of  certain  Latin  phrases;  as,  per 
centum,  by  the  hundred  (abbreviated  usually  to  per  cent. ) ;  per 
annum,  by  the  year ;  per  contra,  on  the  contrary ;  per  diem,  by 
the  day ;  per  se,  by  himself,  or  itself  (most  commonly  used  as 
meaning  in  itself;  considered  by  itself  alone;  simply  as  such;  in 
its  own  nature  without  reference  to  its  relations ;  as,  cruelty  is 
a  sin  per  se) .    Compare  via. 

The  use  of  per  as  an  English  preposition  in  such  phrases  as 
per  day,  per  gallon,  per  yard,  per  steamer,  per  invoice,  is  con- 
demned on  the  ground  that  the  joining  of  a  Latin  with  an 
English  word  to  form  a  phrase  is  a  barbarism.  Some  of  these 
phrases  are,  however,  so  convenient  that  they  are  likely  to  hold 
their  own,  at  least  in  commercial  life,  especially  since  they  may 
plead  as  examples  the  use  of  the  Greek  preposition  anti  and  the 
Latin  preposition  ex  as  English  formatives,  as  in  anti-expsm- 
sionist,  ea?-president. 

ROU]VD 

See  AROUND. 

10 


save  Prepositions  146 

SAVE,  SAVINO 

Save,  the  imperative,  and  saving,  the  present  participle  (com- 
pare Participial  Prepositions),  of  the  verb  save,  are  used  with 
the  force  of  prepositions,  exactly  equivalent  to  except  or  except- 
ing, i.  e. ,  with  the  exception  of. 

There  is  nothing  in  Heaven  or  earth  beneath 
Save  God  and  man. 

Whittier  My  Soul  and  I  st.  35. 

In  Virginia  none  conld  vote  save  those  who  possessed  snch  a 
freehold  of  fifty  acres.     Fiske  Crit.  Period  Am.  Hist.  ch.  3,  p.  70. 

In  the  field  of  thought,  nothing  save  the  chaff  perishes. 

W.  Fraser  Blending  Lights  ch.  1,  p.  11. 

Saving  has  the  further  use,  though  this  has  now  become  rare, 
of  signifying  without  disrespect  to;  as,  saving  your  highness, 
saving  your  presence. 

Oremio :  Saving  your  tale,  Petruchio,  I  pray, 

Let  us,  that  are  poor  petitioners,  speak  too. 
Shakespeare  The  Taming  of  the  Shrew  act  ii,  sc.  1,  1.  72. 

You,  that  have  so  fair  parts  of  woman  on  you. 

Have  too  a  woman's  heart ;  which  ever  yet 

Affected  eminence,  wealth,  sovereignty : 

Which,  to  say  sooth,  are  blessings,  and  which  gifts 

(Saving  your  mincing)  the  capacity 

Of  your  soft  cheveril  conscience  would  receive. 

If  you  might  please  to  stretch  it. 

Shakespeare  K.  Henry  VIII.  act  ii,  sc.  3,  1.  31. 

Since  is  derived  from  the  Anglo-Saxon  siththan,  from  sith, 
after,  plus  tham,  dative  of  thoet,  that,  thus  signifying  after  that. 

Of  time  exclusively:  during  or  within  the  time  after;  ever 
after;  at  a  time  after;  from  or  after  the  time,  occurrence,  or 
existence  of;  as,  it  is  ten  years  since  we  began  business;  I  have 
been  here  ever  since  I  came.  * 


147  Debined  and  Illustrated  througli 

I  escaped  npon  a  butt  of  sack,  which  the  sailors  heaved  over- 
board, by  this  bottle  !  which  I  made  of  the  bark  of  a  tree,  with 
mine  own  hands,  since  I  was  cast  ashore. 

Shakespeare  The  Tempest  act  ii,  sc.  2,  1.  124. 

But  since  she  did  neglect  her  looking-glass,  .  .  . 
The  air  hath  starv'd  the  roses  in  her  cheeks. 
Shakespeare  Two  Gentlemen  of  Verona  act  iv,  sc.  4, 1. 154. 

My  hunger  and  the  shadows  together  tell  me  that  the  sun 
has  done  much  travel  since  I  fell  asleep. 

George  Eliot  Romola  ch.  10,  p.  107. 

One  thousand  eight  hundred  years  since  their  creation,  the 
Pagan  tales  of  Ovid  .  .  .  are  read  by  all  Christendom. 

De  Quincey  Essays  on  the  Poets,  Pope  p.  157. 

Amongst  mammals,  the  urus  has  become  extinct  from  Europe 
since  the  time  of  Caesar.     Winchell  Preadamites  ch.  27,  p.  433. 

Since  Jeremy  Taylor  and  Richard  Baxter,  English  Protes- 
tantism has  had  no  great  casuists.    Good  Words  May,  1867,  p.  329. 

Never,  since  the  beginning  of  opera,  had  the  like  charivari 
greeted  the  ears  of  men.  J.  Morley  Rousseau  p.  59. 

Since  is  often  used  after  an  indication  of  time  in  a  way  that 
may  be  explained  as  an  elliptical  use  of  a  preposition,  but  may 
be  preferably  classed  as  an  adverb,  equivalent  to  aga ;  as,  many 
years  since ;  not  long  since. 

King :  ...  How  long  is't,  count, 

Since  the  physician  at  your  father's  died  ? 

He  was  much  fam'd. 
Ber. :  Some  six  months  since,  my  lord. 

Shakespeare  AlVs  Well  that  Ends  Well  act  i,  sc.  S),  1.  70. 

MaiTied  three  years  since :  how  his  Countship  sulks  ! 

Browning  Eing  and  Book  bk.  vi,  1.  415. 

THROUOH 

Through  is  from  the  Anglo-Saxon  thurh,  used  in  the  same 
sense. 

I,  Of  place  or  space : 


tiirongii  Prepositions  14§ 

1.  From  limit  to  limit  of,  as  from  end  to  end  or  side  to  side; 
into  on  one  side  and  out  at  the  other ;  as,  the  road  mns  through 
the  village;  the  nail  went  through  his  hand;  to  see  through 
glass,  air,  or  water. 

The  sun  through  heaven  descending 
Like  a  red  and  burning  cinder. 

Longfellow  Hiawatha  pt.  v,  st.  14. 

As  an  -^olian  harp  through  gusty  doors 
Of  some  old  ruin  its  wild  music  pours. 
Longfellow  Wayside  Inn,  Falcon  ofSer  Federigo  st.  4, 1.  13. 

And  suddenly  through  the  drifting  brume 
The  blare  of  the  horns  began  to  ring. 
Longfellow  Wayside  Inn,  King  Olafs  War-Horns  st.  2. 

Old  Andes  thrusts  yon  craggy  spear 
Through  the  gray  clouds. 

Wordsworth  Peter  Bell  prol.,  st.  12. 

Self-love  is  a  cup  without  any  bottom,  and  you  might  pour 
the  Great  Lakes  all  through  it,  and  never  fill  it  up. 

Holmes  Mortal  Antipathy  ch.  10,  p.  138. 

The  stream  that  winds  through  Grasmere  vale  ...  is  of 
great  beauty — clean,  bright,  full,  trouty. 

Burroughs  in  Century  Magazine  Jan.,  1884,  p.  419. 

And  through  the  dark  arch  a  charger  sprang. 

Lowell  Vision  of  Sir  Launfal  pt.  i,  st.  3. 

If  I  undertake  to  look  through  a  drop  of  water,  I  may  be  ar- 
rested at  first,  indeed,  by  the  sports  and  struggles  of  animalcular 
life.  Holland  Lessons  in  Life  lesson  xi,  p.  151. 

Through  every  rift  of  discovery  some  seeming  anomaly  drops 
out  of  the  darkness.  E.  H.  Chapin  Living  Words  p.  80. 

And  these  articulated  veins  through  which 
Our  heart  drives  blood  ! 

E.  B.  Browning  Aurora  Leigh  bk.  v,  1.  119. 

He  walked  fast,  hunted  by  his  fears,  chattering  to  himself, 
skulking  through  the  less  frequented  thoroughfares. 

R.  L.  Stevenson  Dr.  Jekyll  and  Mr.  Hyde  ch.  10,  p.  77. 


14©  Defined  and  Illustrated  throngU 

Malcolm  .  .  .  clomb  the  narrow  duct  of  an  ancient  stone 
stair  that  went  screwing  like  a  great  anger  through  the  pile 
from  top  to  bottom.  MacDonald  Malcolm  ch.  44,  p.  80. 

This  magnet  is  sustained  by  a  very  strong  axle  of  adamant 
passing  through  its  middle,  upon  which  it  plays. 

Swift  Works,  Gulliver  pt.  iii,  ch.  3,  p.  169. 

By  forced  and  rapid  marches    We  took  the  shortest  way, 
A  crow-flight  through  the  Jerseys,    And  added  night  to  day. 
R.  H.  Stoddard  Ballad  of  Valley  Forge  st.  22. 

In  every  city  through  which  he  [Lincoln]  passed,  he  was 
greeted  with  enthusiasm. 

J.  S.  C.  Abbott  Lives  of  the  Presidents  ch.  16,  p.  404. 

We  will  blaze  the  trees,  and  mark  our  track  through  the 
forest  for  you.      Stanley  In  Darkest  Africa  vol.  i,  ch.  6,  p.  125. 

A  hole  was  stove,  through  which  daylight  and  sea  poured  in 
alternately. 
Harriet  Martineau  Biographical  Sketches  pt.  iii,  ch.  6,  p.  209. 

Cerberus,  cruel  monster,  fierce  and  strange, 
Through  his  wide  three-fold  throat,  barks  as  a  dog. 

Dante  Vision  tr.  by  H.  F.  Gary  Hell  can.  6,  1.  12. 

2.  Over  or  into  all  parts  or  portions  of;  from  point  to  point 
or  part  to  part  of;  in  all  directions  in  or  over;  throughout;  as, 
to  look  through  sl  report;  to  traveW/irowgr/i  Europe ;  the  shock 
was  felt  through  his  system ;  his  fame  spread  through  all  lands. 

Through  every  fibre  of  my  brain, 
Through  every  nerve,  through  every  vein 
I  feel  the  electric  thrill,  the  touch 
Of  life  that  seems  almost  too  much. 

Longfellow  A  Day  of  Sunshine  st.  2. 

It  is  better,  in  going  through  the  world,  to  have  the  arms 
chafed  in  that  narrow  passage  than  the  temper. 

DrcJKENS  Christmas  Stories,  Battle  of  Life  pt.  ii,  p .  94 

And  then  we  stroU'd 
For  half  the  day  thro'  stately  theatres 
Bench'd  crescent- wise.    Tennyson  Princess  ii,  st.  10. 


throngii  Prepositions  150 

He  heard  the  baffled  dogs  in  vain 
Rave  through  the  hollow  pass  amain. 

Scott  Lady  of  the  Lake  can.  1,  st.  8. 

Stray  warblers  in  the  branches  dark 
Shot  through  the  leafy  passes. 

Mary  M.  Dodge  In  the  Canon  st.  2. 

For  this  purpose,  he  distributed  his  warriors  through  the 
adjacent  forests;  and  waylaid  every  pass. 

Irving  Columbus  vol.  ii,  bk.  viii,  ch.  3,  p.  36. 

The  colors  were  borne  in  triumph  through  the  streets  of  Lon- 
don, .  .  .  and  were  put  up  as  trophies  in  St.  Paul's  Cathedral. 

Irving  Washington  vol.  i,  ch.  23,  p.  246. 

The  praise  thrilled  through  every  fibre  of  his  big  body,  and 
made  it  tingle  with  pleasure. 

Thackeray  Vanity  Fair  vol.  i,  ch.  3,  p.  26. 

A  low  chant    Swelled  through  the  hollow  arches  of  the  roof. 

N.  P.  Willis  The  Leper  st.  3. 

A  shock  or  vibration  passing  through  the  brain  proves  more 
destructive  than  a  wound  penetrating  its  substance. 

Charles  Bell  Anatomy  of  Expression  essay  ii,  p.  46. 

Where  through  the  long-drawn  aisle  and  fretted  vault 
The  pealing  anthem  swells  the  note  of  praise. 

Gray  Elegy  st.  10. 
Pure  rills  through  vales  of  verdure  warbling  go. 

Beattie  The  Minstrel  bk.  i,  st.  59. 

3.  In  the  midst  of ;  having  as  the  medium  of  motion  or  pas- 
sage; along;  among;  within;  as,  the  bird  flies  through  the  air; 
the  ship  sped  through  the  water ;  to  stroll  through  the  woods. 

Love  will  find  its  way 
Through  paths  where  wolves  would  fear  to  prey. 

Byron  Giaour  st.  32. 

And  ghastly  thr&  the  drizzling  rain 
On  the  bald  street  breaks  the  blank  day. 

Tennyson  In  Memoriam  vii,  st.  3. 

Through  Solway  sands,  through  Tarras  moss. 
Blindfold,  he  knew  the  paths  to  cross. 

Scott  Lay  of  the  Last  Minstrel  can.  1,  st.  21 


151^*=^5as=^.;^^=sUEFINED  AND  ILLUSTRATED  tlirough 

Sometimes  it  struggles  through  ragged  barrancos,  or  ravines, 
worn  by  winter  torrents.  Irving  Alhamhra  p.  15. 

Regiments  of  turkeys  were  gobbling  through  the  farmyard. 
Irving  Sketch-Book,  Sleepy  Hollovj  p.  427. 

All  night  the  surges  of  the  warm  southwest 
Boomed  intermittent  through  the  shuddering  elms. 

Lowell  The  Cathedral  st.  4. 

Who  can  say  what  telegraphic  communication  there  may  be 
through  our  atmosphere,  and  without  wires  ? 

W.  M.  Baker  His  Majesty,  Myself  ch.  10,  p.  87. 

This  action  of  the  English  Regicides  did  in  effect  strike  a 
damp  like  death  through  the  heart  of  flunkeyism  universally  in 
this  world.  Carlyle  Cromwell  vol.  i,  pt.  iv,  p.  328. 

In  rhythmic  motion  through  the  dewy  grass    The  mowers  swept. 
Holland  Kathrina,  Childhood  and  Youth  st.  15. 

Through  thistle,  bent,  and  tangled  fern    The  startled  Cony  flits. 

Hood  The  Elm  Tree  pt.  iii,  st.  4. 

II.  Of  time :  from  the  first  to  the  last  of ;  from  the  begin- 
ning to  the  end  of ;  during  the  whole  period  of ;  as,  I  shall  stay 
through  the  season ;  it  will  affect  him  through  life. 

The  original  belief  respecting  the  form  of  the  Earth  was 
wrong ;  and  this  wrong  belief  survived  through  the  first  civiliza- 
tion. Spencer  Biology  vol.  i,  §  110,  p.  333. 

All  God's  works  of  providence,  through  all  the  ages,  meet  at 
last,  as  so  many  lines  in  one  center. 

Edwards  Redemption  period  iii,  ch.  10,  p.  435. 

III.  Of  various  relations  : 

I.  Over  all  the  steps  of;  from  entrance  into  to  emergence 
from;  into  and  out  of;  from  the  first  to  the  last  of;  as,  to  go 
through  college ;  to  go  through  a  course  of  training ;  to  pass 
through  sl  varied  experience. 

The  fortune-teller  .  .  .  shuffles  through  her  meagre  and 
cheerless  years,  an  object  alike  of  suspicion  and  of  contempt. 

J.  H.  Browne  Great  Metropolis  ch.  14,  p.  146. 


tiirongii  Prepositions  152 

The  priest  gabbled  through  the  baptismal  fornnila. 

Amelia  B.  Edwards  Barbara's  History  ch.  50,  p.  138. 

My  thinned  ranks  told  the  woeful  tale  of  the  fierce  straggles, 
indescribable  by  words,  through  which  my  division  had  passed 
since  7  o'clock  in  the  morning. 

P.  H.  Sheridan  Personal  Memoirs  vol.  i,  ch.  13,  p.  235. 

To  gallop  through  book  after  book  is  to  turn  intellectual  Gil- 
pins.  Geikie  Entering  on  Life,  Reading  p.  243. 

He  [the  business  man]  opens  his  newspaper  and  reads  it  as 
he  swallows  his  breakfast.  ...  In  the  train  he  tears  through 
the  rest  of  his  newspaper. 

R.  DowLiNG  Indolent  Essays,  Holiday  Making  p.  12. 

To  walk  with  you  through  the  Fair,  .  .  .  and  that  we  should 
all  come  home  after  the  flare,  and  the  noise,  and  the  gayety. 

Thackeray  Vanity  Fair  ch.  19,  p.  118. 

2,  Having  as  an  intermediate  term,  step,  or  process ;  by  way 
of;  as,  to  pass  through  youth  to  manhood. 

Fires  gleam  warmly  through  some  of  the  windows. 

Dickens  Bleak  House  ch.  12,  p.  194. 

To  a  clear  eye  the  smallest  fact  is  a  window  through  which 
the  Infinite  may  be  seen.         Huxley  Lay  Sermons  ch.  6,  p.  104. 

Pantheism  and  Monotheism  are  necessary  stages,  through 
which  human  thought  passes  on  its  way  to  Christianity. 

Caird  Kant  vol.  ii,  bk.  i,  ch.  13,  p.  128. 

The  wine  bodega  in  the  south  of  Spain  is  not  a  cellar,  but  a 
lofty  and  capacious  store,  built  on  a  level  with  the  ground,  and 
entered  through  a  preliminary  court  or  garden. 

H.  Vizetelly  Facts  about  Sherry  ch.  2,  p.  22. 

Our  apartment  .  .  .  looked  out  through  a  great  apple-tree. 
Harriet  B.  Stowe  Oldtown  Folks  ch.  88,  p.  428. 

Yet  sometimes  glimpses  on  my  sight. 
Through  present  wrong,  the  eternal  right. 

Whittxeb  GhxLpel  of  the  Hermits  st.  11. 

3.  Having  as  a  means  or  instrument  or  aid;  by  means  of;  as, 
he  spoke  through  an  interpreter;  this  misfortune  came  through 
you;  the  purchase  was  made  through  a  third  party. 


153  Defined  and  Illustrated     throughout 

The  old  political  wire-pullers  never  go  near  the  man  they 
want  to  gain,  if  they  can  help  it;  they  find  out  who  his  intimates 
and  managers  are,  and  work  through  them. 

Holmes  Elsie  Venner  eh.  14,  p.  249. 

He  conquering  through  God,  and  God  by  him. 
Wordsworth  Poems  to  Liberty,  Siege  of  Vienna  1. 14. 

The  interior  beauty  of  a  soul  through  habitual  kindliness  of 
thought  is  greater  than  our  words  can  tell. 

F.  W.  Faber  Spiritual  Conferences,  Kindness  ch.  2,  p.  49. 

Examination  through  a  good  binocular  informed  us  .  .  .  why 
so  much  snow  was  retained  on  Ruwenzori. 

Stanley  In  Darkest  Africa  vol.  ii,  ch.  30,  p.  325. 

4.  On  account  of ;  by  reason  of ;  because  of ;  as,  he  became 
helpless  through  fear. 

England  lost  her  American  Colonics  through  her  blind  con- 
servatism and  through  the  domineering,  greedy,  and  insular 
egotism  of  her  old  Colonial  system. 

Westminster  Review  Aug.,  1891,  p.  116. 

He  .  .  .  became  a  commercial  traveler,  but  lost  his  berth 
through  drink.  Wm.  Booth  In  Darkest  Eng.  pt.  ii,  p.  185. 

THROIJGHOIJT 

Throughout  is  through  strengthened  by  out,  signifying 
through  in  the  fullest  extent ;  through  and  in  every  part  of ; 
from  beginning  to  end  of;  through  and  through;  all  through; 
as,  terror  spread  throughout  the  city. 

I  have  endeavoured  throughout  the  body  of  this  whole  dis- 
course that  every  former  part  might  give  strength  unto  all  that 
follow.  Hooker  Ecclesiastical  Polity  bk.  i,  p.  59. 

Ghiberti's  fame  now  spread  throughout  Italy. 
H.  Grimm  Michael  Angelo  tr.  by  F.  E.  Bunnett,  vol.  i,  ch.  1,  p.  33. 

TILL,   UXTIL, 

Till  is  derived  from  the  Icelandic  til,  to,  till.  Until  is  from 
unto  Vvith  the  substitution  of  til  for  to.  The  two  words  till  and 
until  arc  used  with  no  perceptible  difference  of  meaning. 


till  Prepositions  154 

Of  time  exclusively  to  the  time  of ;  as  far  as ;  up  to ;  as,  I 
shall  remain  till  September;  good  till  used;  he  watched  until 
midnight. 

No  nation  can  be  perfectly  well  governed  till  it  is  competent 
to  govern  itself.  Macaulay  Speeches,  July  10, 1833  p.  147. 

Men  are  all  conservatives ;  everything  new  is  impious,  till  we 
get  accustomed  to  it.  Kingsley  Yeast  ch.  2,  p.  29. 

A  Probability  stands  in  place  of  a  Demonstration  till  a 
greater  Probability  can  be  brought  to  shoulder  it  out.  Joseph 
Mede  Works,  Passages  in  the  Apocalypse  bk.  iii,  ch.  3,  p.  586.- 

Goethe  used  to  work  till  eleven  without  taking  anything  [to 
eat] ,  then  he  drank  a  cup  of  chocolate  and  worked  till  one. 

Hamerton  Intell.  Life  pt.  i,  letter  iii,  p.  15. 

Soft  fell  fb-B  shades,  till  Cynthia's  slender  bow 
Crested  the  farthest  wave,  then  sunk  below. 

Montgomery  West  Indies  pt.  i,  st.  8. 

Old  furniture  was  waxed  till  it  shone  like  a  mirror. 

Margaret  J.  Preston  Aunt  Dorothy  ch.  6,  p.  72. 

Self-denial  is  never  a  complete  virtue  till  it  becomes  a  kind 
of  self-indulgence.  Bushnell  Work  and  Play  lect.  i,  p.  16. 

I  don't  desire  my  biography  to  be  written  till  I  am  dead. 

W.  T.  Sherman  Memoirs  vol.  i,  ch.  11,  p.  269. 

Till  an  ocean  interposes  its  mighty  barriers,  no  citadel  of 
freedom  or  truth  has  long  been  maintained.  Everett  Orations 
and  Speeches,  First  Settlement  of  New  England  p.  45. 

Chimneys  were  unknown  in  such  dwellings  [cottages]  till  the 
early  part  of  Elizabeth's  reign. 

Hallam  Middle  Ages  ch.  9,  pt.  ii,  p.  492. 

Mail  armor  continued  in  general  use  till  about  the  year  1300. 
BuLFiNCH  Age  of  Chivalry  pt.  i,  ch.  1,  p.  22. 

The  spider  .  .  .  commits  her  weight  to  no  thread  .  .  .  till 
she  has  pulled  on  it  with  her  arms,  and  proved  its  strength. 

Guthrie  Gospel  in  Ezekiel  ser.  iv,  p.  71. 

We  .  .  .  made  the  trunk  glacier  our  highway  until  we 
reached  the  point  of  confluence  of  its  branches. 

Tyndall  Hours  of  Exercise  ch.  22,  p.  260. 


155  Defined  and  Illustrated  to 

Society  can  never  prosper,  but  must  always  be  bankrupt 
until  every  man  does  that  which  he  was  created  to  do. 

Emerson  Conduct  of  Life,  Wealth  p,  93. 

Sir  Isaac  Newton  humbly  said  that  he  had  one  talent,  the 
ability  to  look  steadily  at  a  problem  until  he  saw  it  through. 

E.  S.  Phelps  Struggle  for  Immortality  p.  215 

TO,  IJl^TO 

To  is  from  the  Anglo-Saxon  to,  used  in  the  same  sense.  Unto 
is  used  as  the  exact  equivalent  of  to  in  all  senses  except  as  the 
sign  of  the  infinitive,  but  is  now  archaic,  and  in  modem  speech 
practically  unused  except  in  poetry  or  elevated  style.  To  and 
unto  are  used  interchangeably  in  the  authorized  version  of  the 
Bible. 

As  to  the  Lord  and  not  unto  men.  Gal.  iii,  23. 

The  meanings  of  to  must  be  rather  classified  than  defined. 

[To  is  an  elementary  word  not  susceptible  of  formal  defini- 
tion in  any  of  its  various  uses  except  by  the  employment  of  its 
derivative  toward,  or  in  its  place  a  long  and  awkward  peri- 
phrasis. Standard  Dictionary,] 

To  may  be  termed  the  preposition  of  tendency,  aim,  or  desti- 
nation. 

I,  Of  place  or  space : 

1.  Denoting  motion  or  action  in  the  direction  of  and  termi- 
nating in  a  place  or  object :  noting  tendency  and  terminus ;  in 
the  direction  of  and  terminating  at  or  in ;  toward  so  as  to  reach ; 
as,  he  went  to  London ;  the  fruit  fell  to  the  ground. 

Come  to  me  soon  at  night. 

Shakespeare  Merry  Wives  of  Windsor  act  ii,  sc.  2,  1.  278. 

First  go  with  me  to  church,  and  call  me  wife. 
And  then  away  to  Venice  to  your  friend. 
Shakespeare  The  Merchant  of  Venice  act  iii,  sc.  2,  1.  805. 

Ah !  that  is  the  ship  from  over  the  sea, 
That  is  bringing  my  lover  back  to  me. 

Longfellow  Maiden  and  Weathercock  st.  3. 


to 


Prepositions  156 


Come  to  us,  love  us,  and  make  us  your  own. 

Tennyson  A  Welcome  to  Alexandra  1.  28 
And  the  stately  ships  go  on 
To  their  haven  under  the  hill. 

Tennyson  Break,  Break,  Break  st.  3. 
Count  each  affliction,  whether  light  or  grave, 
God's  messenger  sent  down  to  thee. 

Aubrey  Thomas  de  Vere  Affliction  st.  1. 
Quick  to  the  abandoned  wheel  Arion  came 
The  ship's  tempestuous  sallies  to  reclaim. 

William  Falconer  Wrecked  in  the  Tempest  1.  5. 

2.  Denoting  position:  in  or  tending  to  close  connection  or 
contact  with;  touching  or  pressing;  by;  against;  on;  upon;  as, 
the  child  clung  to  his  mother ;  the  bird's  nest  is  fastened  to  the 
limb ;  pressed  to  one's  heart ;  frozen  to  the  surface. 

How  they  keep  their  place  of  vantage, 
Cleaving  firmly  to  the  rock. 

Aytoun  The  Island  of  the  Scots  st.  9. 
The  brushes  which  are  applied  to  the  armature  are  main- 
tained at  different  potentials  when  the  machine  is  in  action. 

C.  F.  Brackett  in  Electricity  in  Daily  Life  ch.  1,  p.  4. 
In  civilized  nations  the  greatest  part  of  mankind  are  .  .  .  fix- 
tures to  the  soil  on  which  they  are  bom. 

Jeremy  Bentham  Works,  International  Law  in  vol.  ii,  p.  543. 
Cannon  to  right  of  them, 
Cannon  to  left  of  them. 
Cannon  in  front  of  them 
Volleyed  and  thundered. 
Tennyson  Charge  of  the  Light  Brigade  st.  3. 
II.  Of  time: 

As  far  as ;  till  the  end  of ;  for  the  utmost  duration  of ;  till ; 
until ;  throughout ;  as,  ten  minutes  to  twelve ;  to  all  eternity. 

Some  venerable  specimens  of  the  domestic  architecture  of  the 
middle  ages  bear  to  this  day  the  marks  of  popular  violence. 

Macaulay  England  vol.  ii,  ch.  10,  p.  439. 
They  go  croaking  to  the  end  of  their  days,  when,  reptile-like, 
they  crawl  out  of  life. 

H.  W.  Beecher  Pulpit  Pungencies  No.  exxi,  p.  84. 


'A 


15 1  Defined  and  Illustrated  to 

The  hen  clucks  and  broods  her  chickens,  unconscious  that  to  the 
end  of  the  world  she  is  part  and  parcel  of  a  revelation  of  God  to 
man.    T.  W.  Handford  H.  W.  Beecher,  Grand  Call  to  Lahor^.  118. 

He  wore  his  hair,  to  the  last,  powdered  and  frizzed  out. 

Lamb  Essays  ofElia,  South-Sea  House  p.  4. 

The  new  Latin  tongues  have  pagan  roots  that  retain  vitality 
to  this  day.  D.  H.  Wheeler  By  Ways  of  Lit.  ch.  9,  p.  181. 

To  the  last  the  genuine  Roman  never  quitted  Rome  even  for 
a  few  months  -nthout  a  wi-ench  to  his  feelings. 

Merivale  Gen.  Hist.  Borne  ch.  22,  p.  179. 

Thou  hast  not  left  me,  oft  as  I  left  Thee. 
On  to  the  close,  O  Lord,  abide  with  me ! 

Henry  Francis  Lyte  Abide  with  Me  st.  5. 

II.  Of  various  relations : 

1.  Denoting  the  object,  result,  end,  or  goa^  of  an  action, 
whether  it  be  a  person,  a  thing,  an  abstract  quality,  or  the  like, 
without  reference  to  locality,  and  used  in  a  great  variety  of  rela- 
tions, where  many  other  languages  would  employ  the  dative 
case ;  as,  true  to  his  master ;  devoted  to  his  religion ;  an  inclina- 
tion to  literary  pursuits ;  driven  to  madness ;  give  it  to  me ;  the 
matter  is  important  to  me ;  submission  to  the  inevitable. 

To  perform  the  mercy  promised  to  our  fathers.        Luke  i,  72. 

They  said.  What  is  that  to  us  ?  see  thou  to  that.   Matt,  xxvii,  4. 

All  they  that  dwelt  at  Lydda  and  Saron  saw  him,  and  turned 
to  the  Lord.  Acts  ix,  35. 

That  they  may  have  right  to  the  tree  of  life.        Bev.  xxii,  14. 

I  will  be  deaf  to  pleading  and  excuses. 
Shakespeare  Borneo  and  Jidiet  act  iii,  sc.  1,  1. 196. 

'Zounds!  a  dog,  a  rat,  a  mouse,  a  cat,  to  scratch  a  man  to 
death'  Shakespeare  Borneo  and  Juliet  act  iii,  sc.  1,  1. 104. 

If  thou  dost  find  him  tractable  to  us. 
Shakespeare  K.  Bichard  III.  act  iii,  sc.  1, 1. 174. 

True  religion  is,  at  its  soul,  spiritual  sympathy  with,  spiritual 
obedience  to  God. 

Phillips  Brooks  Light  of  the  World  ser.  v,  p.  77. 


to 


Prepositions  158 


2,  Denoting  an  end  to  be  accomplished  or  a  result  reached  or 
to  be  reached,  a  goal  attained,  destination,  design,  purpose,  aim, 
or  the  like :  aiming  at ;  resulting  in ;  as,  tempted  to  his  ruin ; 
roused  to  splendid  daring;  apprenticed  to  a  trade;  born  to  trouble; 
broken  to  saddle ;  sown  to  wheat. 

I  love  to  give  myself  up  to  the  illusions  of  poetry. 

Irving  Sketch-Booh,  Boar's  Head  Tavern  p.  145. 

3,  Denoting  that  on  account  of  which  an  obligation  is  in- 
curred :  under  obligation  respecting ;  in  behalf  of ;  for ;  toward  ; 
as,  my  duty  to  the  church ;  (in  accounting)  debtor  [Dr.]  because 
of ;  as,  To  medical  attendance  $5. 

Free,  and  to  none  accountable. 

Milton  Paradise  Lost  bk.  ii,  1.  255. 

To  twenty  poor  widows  he  left  two  guineas  each. 

Jas.  Parton  People's  Biography,  John  Howard  p.  73. 

4,  In  opposition  toward ;  against ;  opposing,  matching,  equal- 
ing, or  confronting ;  as,  face  to  face  ;  the  battle  was  fought  hand 
to  hand ;  the  betting  was  ten  to  one. 

What  I  am  I  dar'd,  and  bearded  to  my  face? 

Shakespeare  1  K,  Henry  VL  act  1,  sc.  3. 

Follow  us :  who  knows?  we  four  may  build  some  plan 
Foursquare  to  opposition.  Tennyson  Princess  v,  st.  4. 

Now,  man  to  man,  and  steel  to  steel, 
A  chieftain's  vengeance  thou  shalt  feel. 

Scott  Lady  of  the  Lake  can.  5,  st.  12. 

The  Prince  .  .  .  objected  to  the  use  of  the  word  *  pardon '  on 
the  ground  that  he  had  never  done  anything  requiring  his  Maj- 
esty's forgiveness.  Motley  Dutch  Republic  vol.  iii,  p.  5. 

We  are  immediately  conscious  in  perception  of  an  ego  and  a 
non-ego,  known  together,  and  known  in  contrast  to  each  other. 

Hamilton  Metaphysics  lect.  xvi,  p.  200. 

[Patronage  in  offices]  is  utterly  abhorrent  to  the  ideas  on  which 
the  .  .  .  government  of  the  United  States  has  been  founded. 

H.  C.  Lodge  in  Century  Magazine  Oct.,  1890,  p.  840. 


159  Defined  and  Illustrated  to 

To  the  superstitions  that  pass  under  the  name  of  religion, 
science  is  antagonistic.  Spencer  Education  ch.  1,  p.  90. 

The  executive  government  was  unequal  to  the  elementary- 
work  of  maintaining  peace  and  order. 

Froude  English  in  h^eland  vol.  iii,  bk.  viii,  ch.  1,  p.  5. 

5.  In  correspondence  with ;  in  a  manner  suitable  for ;  in  ac- 
companiment with ;  respecting ;  concerning ;  as,  to  dance  to  the 
music ;  to  draw  to  scale ;  to  paint  to  the  life ;  to  speak  to  the  reso- 
lution ;  we  will  confer  as  to  that. 

As  unto  the  bow  the  cord  is, 

So  unto  the  man  is  woman. 

Though  she  bends  him,  she  obeys  him, 

Though  she  draws  him,  yet  she  follows. 

Longfellow  Hiawatha  pt.  x,  st.  1. 

Till  at  the  last  she  set  herself  to  man, 
Like  perfect  music  unto  noble  words. 

Tennyson  Princess  vii,  st.  21, 

The  arched  cloister,  far  and  wide. 
Rang  to  the  warrior's  clanking  stride. 

Scott  Lay  of  the  Last  Minstrel  can.  2,  st.  3. 

A  subtile,  refined  policy  was  conformable  to  the  genius  of  the 
Italians.  Prescott i^erdinand andIsdbella\o\.  ii,  pt.  ii,  ch.l,  p.  259. 

And  the  sounding  aisles  of  the  dim  woods  rang 
To  the  anthem  of  the  free  ! 

Felicia  D.  Hemans  Landing  of  Pilgrim  Fathers  st.  5. 

*  Bit '  is  that  which  has  been  bit  off,  and  exactly  corresponds  to 
the  word  *  morsel,'  used  in  the  same  sense,  and  derived  from  the 
Latin,  mordere,  to  bite.  Mathews  TVords  p.  387. 

If  honors  and  emoluments  could  have  biassed  the  independent 
mind  of  our  countryman,  he  must  have  been  induced  to  become  a 
full  conformist  to  the  English  Church. 

T.  M'Crie  John  Knox  period  iii,  p.  79. 

Spring  has  come  !  the  rills  as  they  glisten 
Sing  to  the  pebble  and  greening  grass. 

W.  W.  Story  Spring  st.  3. 


to 


Prepositions  160 


6.  Denoting  degree  or  extent :  reaching  in  amount,  degree,  or 
tliG  like ;  as  far  as ;  in  comparison  with  ;  as,  the  thermometer  rose 
to  90°  in  the  shade ;  the  whole  came  to  ten  dollars  ;  faithful  to  (or 
unto)  death. 

Yet,  he  prefers  thee  to  the  gilded  domes, 
Or  gewgaw  grottos  of  the  vainly  great. 

Byron  Newatead  Abbey  st.  38. 

We  do  not  pretend  to  know  to  what  precise  extent  the  canon- 
ists of  Oxford  agree  with  those  of  Rome. 

Macaulay  Essays,  Church  and  State  p.  394. 

Philosophy  rose  to  its  highest  level  through  the  Stoics  at  a 
time  when  the  Greek  mind  was  declining. 

Gladstone  Impregnable  Rock  essay  iii,  p.  102. 

The  rule  of  quietness  prevails,  almost  to  the  point  of  an  Eng- 
lish dinner-party.  R.  H.  Dana,  Jr.  To  Cuba  ch.  2,  p.  20. 

Truth  may  perhaps  come  to  the  price  of  a  pearl,  that  showeth 
best  by  day  ;  but  it  will  not  rise  to  the  price  of  a  diamond  or  car- 
buncle, that  showeth  best  in  varied  lights. 

Bacon  Works,  Essays,  Of  Truth  in  vol.  i,  p.  261. 

The  Congo  and  its  tributaries  have  been  already  explored  to  a 
length  of  eleven  thousand  miles.  Mrs.  H.  Grattan-Guinness 
New  World  of  Central  Africa  %  1,  ch.  1,  p.  12. 


A  general  rise  or  a  geheral  fall  of  prices  is  merely  tantamount 
to  an  alteration  cf  the  value  of  money. 

Mill  Political  Economy  vol.  i,  bk.  iii,  ch.  1,  p.  541. 

Faculty  is  properly  limited  to  the  endowments  which  are  natural 
to  man  and  universal  with  the  race.    Porter  Human  Intellect  %  36. 

7.  Denoting  addition,  superposition,  or  the  like  ;  as  an  increase 
or  adjunct  of ;  as,  add  to  your  faith  virtue. 

The  poet  Euripides  happened  to  be  coupled  to  two  noisy  Vixens, 
who  HO  plagued  him  with  their  jealousies  and  quan-els,  that  he 
became  ever  after  a  professed  woman-hater. 

Hume  Essays,  Polygamy  p.  108. 

Spurning  manhood,  and  its  joys  to  boot, 
To  be  a  lawless,  lazy,  sensual  brute. 

Saxe  Spell  of  Circe  1.  56. 


161  Defined  and  Illustrated  to 

The  most  valuable  additions  made  to  legislation  have  been 
enactments  destructive  of  preceding  legislaiion. 

Buckle  Hist.  Civilization  vol.  1,  eh.  5,  p.  200. 

They  added  ridge  to  valley,  brook  to  pond, 
And  sighed  for  all  that  bounded  their  domain. 

Emerson  Hamatreya  st.  3. 

8.  Denoting  application  or  attention ;  as,  sit  down  to  dinner ; 
to  set  to  work ;  to  bend  to  study. 

Now  to  my  charms,     And  to  my  wily  trains. 

Milton  Cvmus  1.  151. 

He,  therefore,  gave  much  of  his  time  to  the  concerns  of  vert 
and  venison.  Kennedy  Horse-Shoe  Robinson  ch.  37,  p.  402. 

I  see  small  girls  of  ten  who  might  well  shame  big  men  of  forty 
as  they  buckle  to  their  lessons. 

R.  COLLYER  Life  that  Now  Is  ch.  13,  p.  270. 

Through  the  bruteness  and  toughness  of  matter,  a  subtle  spirit 
bends  all  things  to  its  own  will. 

Fmerson  Essays,  History  in  first  series,  p.  19. 

I'm  going  to  bone  right  down  to  it. 

H.  A.  Beers  in  Century  Magazine  June,  1883,  p.  273. 

9.  Denoting  attribution,  appurtenance,  attendance,  possession, 
or  the  like :  in  connection  with ;  appropriate  for ;  as,  a  cloak  with 
a  hood  to  it ;  the  key  to  the  barn. 

The  principle  of  free  governments  adheres  to  the  American 
soil.     It  is  bedded  in  it,  immovable  as  its  mountains. 

Webster  Works,  Bunker  Hill  Monument  in  vol.  i,  p  77. 

Every  quality  peculiar  to  the  Saxons  was  hateful  to  the  Brilons ; 
even  their  fairness  of  complexion.  I.  D'Israeli  Amenities  of 
Lit.f  England  and  the  English  in  vol.  i,  p.  26. 

He  had  belonged  ,  .  .  to  the  armorer's  gang  on  board  a  British 
man-of-war.  Nokdhoff  Sailor  Life  p.  208. 

The  application  of  springs  to  carriages,  =  .  .  not  only  renders 
them  so  It-moving  vehicles  on  rough  roads,  but  lessens  the  pull  to 
the  horses.  Arnott  Elements  of  Physics  art.  277,  p.  154. 

u 


to 


Prepositions  162 


The  roof  has  a  protecting  slope  to  it ;  as  one  looks  at  the  house, 
it  is  like  a  fluffy,  feathery  old  hen  which  has  settled  down  in  the 
short  grass  in  the  sunshine  to  cover  her  chickens. 

Atlantic  Monthly  June,  18^3,  p.  856. 

The  emperor  [Otho  I.]  .  .  .  confirmed  to  the  Apostolic  See  the 
donations  made  by  Pepin  and  Charlemagne,  *  saving  in  all  things,' 
says  he,  *our  authority,  and  that  of  our  son  and  descendants.' 

W.  Russell  Modern  Europe  vol.  i,  letter  xvi,  p.  91. 

10,  In  the  relation  of ;  with  regard  for ;  for ;  as,  he  had  this  to 
his  credit. 

All  his  frame  thrilled  with  a  celestial  glory. 

And  to  himself  he  murmured,  *  This  is  love.' 
Bulwer-Lytton  Lost  Tales  of  Miletus,  Cydippe  st.  41. 

The  avenues  of  public  justice  everywhere  in  the  United  States 
are  equally  open  to  all  persons. 

T.  F.  Bayard  in  The  Forum  May,  1891,  p.  240. 

Sceptre  and  sword  were  f ashion'd  to  his  hand  I 
Tasso  Jerusalem  Delivered  tr.  by  Wiffen,  can.  3,  st.  59. 

*  Society  is  sour  grapes  to  those  beyond  its  pale,'  said  Wemyss, 
*  but  those  who  can  value  it  press  from  it  the  wine  of  life.' 

F.  J.  Stimson  First  Harvests  ch.  9,  p.  92. 

Men  can  be  to  other  men  as  the  shadow  of  a  great  rock  in  a 
weary  land.  Drummond  Pax  Vdbiscum  ch.  2,  p.  25. 

No  Christian  man  *  liveth  to  himself.' 

R.  Watson  Sermons  vol.  i,  ser.  xxvii,  p.  316. 

They  sacrificed  their  sons  and  their  daughters  unto  devils. 

Ps.  cvi,  37. 

Apply  thine  heart  unto  instruction.  Prov.  xxiii,  12. 

For  I  shall  sutler  be     Unto  the  camp,  and  profits  will  accrue. 

Shakespeare  K,  Henry  F.  act  ii,  so.  1. 

Omission  of  "  to  " 

To  Is  often  omitted  after  bring,  give,  show,  teU,  and  certain 

other  verbs.    That  this  is  a  real  ellipsis,  and  not  a  grammatical 

fiction,  is  shown  by  the  fact  that  if  the  direct  object  of  the  verb 

intervenes  between  the  verb  and  the  indirect  object,  to  is  com- 


163  Defined  and  Illustrated  to 

monly  expressed.  Thus  we  say,  "  Give  me  the  book,"  or  "Give 
the  book  to  me.'*  Cowper  makes  John  Gilpin  say,  "Yet  bring 
it  me,"  but  this  is  a  usage  that  would  not  be  possible  now;  we 
should  say,  "  bring  it  to  me,"  and  one  would  scarcely  be  under- 
stood otherwise.  We  say,  **  You  must  tell  me  the  truth,"  or  "  You 
must  tell  the  truth  to  me."  The  verb  in  such  use  thus  has  only 
one  real  object,  called  the  direct  object,  as  book,  truth,  etc.,  in 
the  above  examples;  the  so-called  indirect  object,  as  me  in  the 
examples  given,  being  really  dependent  on  the  preposition  to, 
expressed  or  understood. 

To  is  commonly  also  omitted  after  hand,  pass,  offer,  telegraph, 
wire,  write,  the  indirect  object  directly  following  the  verb ;  as, 
hand  me  that  umbrella ;  please  pass  me  the  butter ;  you  can  not 
offer  him  so  little ;  telegraph  (or  wire)  me  full  particulars ;  write 
me  promptly  on  arrival.  In  these  cases,  as  with  give  and  other 
like  verbs,  if  the  direct  object  is  put  first,  the  indirect  must  be 
preceded  by  to;  as,  hand  that  umbrella  to  me;  he  telegraphed 
full  particulars  to  the  company.  While  to  is  constantly  omitted 
after  tell,  it  is  now  never  omitted  after  speak;  as,  speak  to  me. 
But  formerly  speak  could  also  be  used  without  to ;  as,  you  had 
best  speak  him  fair. 

Similarly  are  to  be  explained  the  prepositional  uses  of  like  and 
near,  with  which  the  preposition  to  or  unto  was  formerly  used. 

Man  is  like  to  vanity.  Ps.  cxliv,  4. 

Even  such  our  griefs;  .  .  .  like  to  groves,  being  topp'd,  they 

higher  rise.  Shakespeare  Pericles  act  i,  sc.  4. 

The  children  of  Israel,  a  people  near  unto  him.   Ps.  cxlviii,  14. 

The  to  is  now  so  uniformly  omitted  that  like  and  near  have 
come  to  have  practically  the  force  of  prepositions ;  as,  he  behaved 
like  a  child ;  he  stood  near  the  door. 

Improper  Omission  of  "to" 
A  prevalent  error  in  some  parts  of  the  United  States  is  the 
omission  of  to  after  the  word  go  ;  as,  "  She  is  always  wanting  to 
go  places";  "  I  will  go  any  place. ^'    In  all  such  cases  to  should  be 


to  Prepositions  164 

used,  its  omission  being  never  countenanced  by  good  writers  and 
accurate  speakers.  The  expressions  somewhere,  anyicheve  may 
often  be  used  for  the  meaning  which  this  popular  idiom  eiTone- 
ously  seeks  to  express ;  as,  **  I  want  to  go  someivhere";  **I  will  go 
anywhere."  The  omission  of  to  before  home  is  not  a  parallel  case, 
but  is  perfectly  correct  and  justified  by  the  best  usage,  home  in 
such  use  being  an  adverb.  As  an  adverb  home  is  used  with  very 
many  verbs ;  as,  send  him  home ;  let  him  bring  it  home.  When 
used  as  a  noun,  home  requires  the  preposition  ;  as,  I  am  going  to 
my  home. 

IV.  As  the  *'  sign  "  of  the  infinitive  mode.  In  this  relation  the 
Anglo  Saxon  used  the  preposition  to  followed  by  a  special  dative 
form  of  the  verbal  noun,  distinguished  from  the  simple  infinitive, 
which  was  used  without  to.  The  English,  with  its  constant  elimi- 
nation of  inflections,  and  its  tendency  to  simplicity  of  form,  has 
dropped  the  special  form  of  the  infinitive  and  the  dative  case,  but 
retains  the  preposition  to  joined  with  the  unmodified  form  of  the 
verb  to  express  the  infinitive. 

Endless  difficulties  have  been  raised  by  grammarians  in  refer- 
ence to  the  to  used  as  a  formative  of  the  infinitive.  Says  Goold 
Brown  :  * 

*'The  forms  of  parsing,  and  also  the  rules  which  are  given  in 
the  early  English  grammars,  are  so  very  defective  that  it  is  often 
impossible  to  say  positively  what  their  authors  did  or  did  not  intend 
to  teach.  .  .  .  But  Murray's  twelfth  rule  of  syntax,  while  it  ex- 
pressly calls  to  before  the  infinitive  a  preposition,  absurdly  takes 
from  it  this  regimen,  and  leaves  us  a  preposition  that  governs 
nothing  and  has  apparently  nothing  to  do  with  the  relation  of  the 
terms  between  which  it  occurs. 

*'  Many  later  grammarians,  perceiving  the  absurdity  of  calling 
to  before  the  infinitive  a  preposition  without  supposing  it  to  govern 
the  verb,  have  studiously  avoided  this  name  ;  and  have  either  made 
the  '  little  word '  a  supernumerary  part  of  speech,  or  treated  it  as 
no  part  of  speech  at  all.  Among  these,  if  I  mistake  not,  are 
Allen.  Lennie,  Bullions,  Alger,  Guy,  Churchill,  Hiley,  Nutting, 
Mulligan,   Spencer,   and  Wells.     Except  Comly,   the  numerous 

*  Grammar  of  English  Grammars  pp.  616-17. 


105  Defined  and  Illustrated  to 

modifiers  of  Murray's  Grammar  are  none  of  them  more  consistent, 
on  this  point,  than  was  Murray  himself.  Such  of  them  as  do  not 
follow  him  literally,  either  deny,  or  forbear  to  affirm,  that  to  be- 
fore a  verb  is  a  preposition ;  and  consequently  either  tell  us  not 
what  it  is,  or  tell  us  falsely  ;  some  calling  it  *  a  part  of  the  verb,' 
while  they  neither  join  it  to  the  verb  as  a  prefix,  nor  include  it 
among  the  auxiliaries. 

*'  Many  are  content  to  call  the  word  to  a  prefix,  a  particle,  a 
little  word,  a  sign  of  the  infinitive,  a  part  of  the  infinitive,  a  part 
of  the  verb,  and  the  like,  without  telling  us  whence  it  comes,  how 
it  differs  from  the  preposition  to,  or  to  what  part  of  speech  it 
belongs.  It  certainly  is  not  what  we  usually  call  a  prefix,  because 
we  never  join  it  to  the  verb ;  yet  there  are  three  instances  in 
which  it  becomes  such  before  a  noun:  viz.,  ^o-day,  fo-night,  to- 
morrow. If  it  is  a  *  particle,'  so  is  any  other  preposition,  as  well 
as  every  small  and  invariable  word.  If  it  is  a  '  little  word,'  the 
whole  bigness  of  a  preposition  is  unquestionably  found  in  it ;  and 
no  *  word '  is  so  small  but  that  it  must  belong  to  some  one  of  the 
ten  classes  of  speech.  If  it  is  a  '  sign  of  the  infinitive,'  because  it 
is  used  before  no  other  mood,  so  is  it  a  *  sign '  of  the  objective  case, 
or  of  what  in  Latin  is  called  the  dative,  because  it  precedes  no 
other  case.  If  we  suppose  it  to  be  a  '  part  of  the  infinitive,'  or  a 
*  part  of  the  verb,'  it  is  certainly  no  necessary  part  of  either  ;  be- 
cause there  is  no  verb  which  may  not,  in  several  different  ways, 
be  properly  used  in  the  infinitive  without  it.  But  if  it  be  a  part 
of  the  infinitive,  it  must  be  a  vei^b,  and  ought  to  be  classed  with 
the  auxiliaries." 

The  argument  would  seem  to  be  sufficiently  simple.  The  to 
was  distinctly  a  preposition  in  Anglo-Saxon.  The  inference  would 
be  that  it  is  the  same  in  English.  This  inference  must  hold  unless 
there  is  proof  to  the  contrary,  and  there  is  no  proof  to  the  con- 
trary. No  one  has  ever  been  able  to  show  why  the  to  of  the  infin- 
itive is  not  a  preposition.  The  argument  supposed  to  prove  this 
seems  to  be  that  a  preposition  must  "govern"  an  "objective  case," 
and  as  a  verb  can  have  no  "  case,"  therefore  a  preposition  can  not 
•'  govern  "  it,  and  consequently  the  to  can  not  be  a  preposition,  but 
must  be  something  else.  What  else  the  word  to  can  be  in  such 
use  no  one  has  been  able  to  show,  and  many  have  taken  refuge  in 
leaving  the  word  outside  of  all  the  parts  of  speech,  landing  in  the 


to 


Prepositions  166 


absurdity  of  a  word  that  is  not  a  part  of  speech.  But,  as  shown 
in  Chapter  I,  the  '* government'*  of  nouns  by  prepositions  is  in 
English  a  mere  grammatical  figment.  Not  one  English  noun  has 
any  different  form  in  the  so-called  ** objective"  from  what  it  has 
in  the  nominative  case.  **He  fell  to  the  ground."  How  do  we 
know  that  "ground"  is  "in  the  objective  case"?  Because  it  is 
*  *  governed  "  by  the  preposition  "  to. "  How  do  we  know  that  "  to  " 
is  a  preposition  here  ?  Because  it  "  governs  "  the  "  objective  case." 
This  is  circular  reasoning  with  a  very  short  radius,  ending  nowhere. 

If  we  drop  the  fiction  of  "  government,"  and  say  simply  that  a 
preposition  shows  some  direct  relation  between  a  preceding  and  a 
following  term,  we  solve  the  whole  difficulty ;  for  the  to  of  the  in- 
finitive does  exactly  this.  In  the  expression  "  Tell  him  to  go,"  the 
*'  ^o"  indicates  that  the  action  of  the  verb  "tell"  is  closely  con- 
nected with  the  action  of  the  verb  "go,"  just  as  in  "Tell  it  to 
John,"  the  "fo"  indicates  that  the  action  of  the  verb  "tell"  is 
closely  connected  with  the  person  called  "John."  The  instances 
are  precisely  parallel.  So  far  as  grammatical  form  is  concerned, 
there  is  as  much  "objective  case"  in  the  word  "go"  as  in  the 
word  "John."  Neither  of  them  is  changed  ia  form  in  the  slightest 
degree.  "  Go  "  Bemains  "  go  "  and  "John  "  remains  "  John  "  after 
the  "fo,"  however  we  may  construe  it.  So  far  as  the  connection 
of  thought  is  concerned,  *'go"  is  just  as  much  dependent  upon 
"  tell "  in  the  one  sentence  as  "  John  "  is  upon  "  tell "  in  the  other, 
and  in  either  example  the  "  ^o  "  indicates  this  dependence,  and  is, 
so  to  speak,  the  medium  of  its  transfer.  All  that  marks  the  word 
as  a  preposition  in  the  one  instance  marks  it  as  such  in  the  other. 
The  only  answer  to  this  argument  is  the  bald  assertion  that 
"  a  preposition  can  not  govern  a  verb."  But  this  assertion  is  dis- 
proved by  the  fact  that  in  the  Greek  language  the  preposition  does 
exactly  that,  so  that  an  infinitive  with  all  its  adjimcts  will  be  put 
in  either  the  genitive,  dative,  or  accusative  after  a  preposition,  and 
often  preceded  by  the  definite  article  in  the  appropriate  case. 

What  is  possible  to  human  thought  in  one  language  is  possible 
to  human  thought  in  any  other  language. 


167  Defined  and  Illustrated  to 

If  any  one  pleases  to  call  the  ''to"  simply  the  **  sign  "  of  the 
infinitive,  there  can  be  no  special  objection,  but  as  a  matter  of 
logical  analysis  the  combination  of  the  root-idea  of  tendency 
expressed  by  the  preposition  to  with  the  idea  expressed  in  the 
root-form  of  any  verb  gives  the  most  rational  and  satisfying 
explanation  of  the  infinitive.  The  Standard  ^  the  Century,  and 
the  International  dictionary  agree  in  classing  to  in  such  use  as 
a  preposition. 

Infinitive  Without  **  to  " 

That  the  **  to"  of  the  infinitive  construction  is  not  "a  part  of 
the  verb  "  appears  from  the  fact  that  the  idea  of  the  infinitive  can 
be,  and  in  numerous  cases  is,  expressed  without  it.  This  verbal 
form  in  infinitive  use  without  *'to"  Maetzner  terms  "the  pure 
infinitive.''*  Thus  he  classes  the  form  of  the  verb  used  after  aux- 
iliaries as  "  the  pure  infinitive,"  as  in  the  sentences  "  I  may  go,''^ 
*'  he  may  come,'*'*  and  the  like.  The  same  explanation  of  the  auxil- 
iary usage  is  given  by  the  Standard  and  by  the  Century  dictionary. 

Simple  rules  are  the  following  : 

The  infinitive  without  to  is  used 

(1)  After  auxiliaries,  as  do,  can,  may,  must,  shall,  and  will. 

(2)  After  hid,  dare,  feel,  go,  have,  hear,  help,  let,  make,  need, 
please,  and  see. 

To  be  a  statesman  or  reformer  requires  a  courage  that  dares 
defy  dictation  from  any  quarter. 

E.  P.  Whipple  Character  essay  iii,  p.  91. 

(3)  After  !nany  verbs  of  perception  analogous  to  see,  hear,  feel, 
etc.;  as,  behold,  discern,  find,  know,  mark,  observe,  perceive, 
watch,  and  some  others. 

[With  many  of  the  verbs  specified  under  (2)  and  (3)  the  infini- 
tive with  the  preposition  may  also  be  used.] 

(4)  After  certain  elliptical  phrases,  especially  those  employing 
some  part  of  the  verb  have  with  an  adverbial  element ;  as,  had 
better,  had  best,  had  as  lief,  had  rather,  etc. 


*  English  Grammar  vol.  iii,  p.  1. 


'■rL\    -J 


to  Prepositions  168 

[The  idea  that  had  is  corrupted  from  would  needs  no  confuta- 
tion. Maetzner  English  Grammar  vol.  iii,  p.  8.] 

(5)  Somewhat  rarely,  after  the  verbs  heg^  charge,  command, 
entreat,  force,  persuade,  pray,  will,  and  some  others :  after  these 
verbs  the  prepositional  infinitive  is  now  commonly  used. 

[Note. — A  usage  which  is  often  severely  criticized  is  that  of  the 
split  or  cleft  infinitive;  as,  to  suddenly  fall.  Abstractly  there 
seems  no  more  objection  to  the  split  infinitive  than  to  the  split 
indicative.  We  say,  "The  value  will  greatly  increase,''  and  it 
seems  every  way  as  rational  to  say  "The  value  is  sure  to  greatly 
increase.^'  The  latter  is  a  very  popular  idiom,  and  often  very 
forcible,  though  not  commonly  found  in  our  best  literature.  If 
this  usage  meets  a  general  popular  demand,  as  now  appears  prob- 
able, it  will  ultimately  win  acceptance,  but  it  can  not  at  present 
be  classed  as  an  approved  idiom.]  Ay]\;T^ii^  '^  ^^^^^a.M^ 

Verbs  and  Other  Antecedents  ^^^ds:  T. 

To  is  used  after  numerous  verbs,  especially  of  the  following 
classes : 

1.  Verbs  directly  denoting  motion,  to  indicate  direction  or 
terminus ;  as,  hear,  bring,  carry,  come,  drag,  draw,  fall,  flee,  go, 
hasten,  lead,  pull,  push,  rise,  send,  ship,  sink,  throw,  and  many 
others. 

2.  Verbs  denoting  the  direction  of  some  bodily  action;  as, 
bend,  bow,  kneel,  stoop,  etc. 

3.  Verbs  denoting  the  direction  or  reference  of  some  act  of 
communication  or  the  like;  as,  address,  appeal,  call,  complain, 
lie,  pray,  preach,  recite,  relate,  repeat,  shout,  sing,  sue,  talk,  tel- 
egrajjh,  telephone,  tell,  whisper,  write,  etc.  *  ^ 

4.  Verbs  denoting  some  lasting  combination  of  one  object 
with  another,  whether  literally  or  figuratively ;  as,  adhere,  ally, 
append,  attach,  bind,  chain,  cleave,  cling,  fasten,  fix,  glue,  grow, 
hang,  hold,  knit,  link,  marry,  nail,  pin,  rivet,  screw,  stick,  tie,  wed. 

5.  Verbs  denoting  sounds,  movements  of  the  body,  or  emo 
tions  of  the  mind  which  are  or  seem  to  be  in  response  to  some- 


169  Defined  and  Illustrated         tonciitns 

thing  treated  as  the  object;  as,  dance,  echo,  melt  (to  tears,  or  the 
like),  quiver,  resound,  respond,  ring,  roar,  sound,  spring,  thrill, 
tremble,  vibrate,  and  many  others. 

6.  Verbs  denoting  change  take  to  (or  often  into)  before  the 
word  denoting  the  resultant  effect  or  condition ;  as,  alter,  burn, 
change,  congeal,  contract,  diminish,  expand,  freeze,  grow,  in- 
crease, melt,  reduce,  transform,  transmute,  turn,  etc. 

7.  Verbs  denoting  appropriateness,  agreement,  etc. ;  as, 
adapt,  agree,  conform,  consent,  fit,  suit,  etc. 

Adjectives  followed  by  to  are  too  numerous  to  give  in  full 
list,  but  a  few  classes  may  be  specified : 

1.  Adjectives  of  location  or  situation;  as,  adjacent,  adjoin- 
ing, close,  contiguous,  near  (which  by  omission  of  the  to  often 
seems  to  be  itself  a  preposition),  and  many  others. 

2.  Adjectives  of  comparison,  adaptation,  or  agreement;  as, 
according,  agreeable,  congenial,  equal,  equivalent,  like  (which 
by  omission  of  the  to  seems  often  to  be  itself  a  preposition), 
proportionate,  similar,  and  many  others,  with  their  contraries, 
as  disagreeable,  unlike,  etc. 

3.  Adjectives  denoting  attraction,  approval,  and  the  like ;  as, 
dear,  delightful,  pleasant,  pleasing,  precious,  sacred,  welcome, 
with  their  contraries,  as  hateful,  indifferent,  odious,  etc. 

4.  Adjectives  denoting  disposition,  treatment,  etc. ;  as,  cruel, 
false,  good,  honest,  just,  kind,  mild,  obedient,  partial,  stern, 
unfair,  unjust,  etc. 

Numerous  nouns  take  to  before  the  object  with  which  the 
antecedent  noun  comes  into  close  relation ;  as,  a  friend  to  the 
deserving  (where  of  might  be  used  with  slight  difference  of  sug- 
gestion), a  traitor  to  his  country,  etc. 

TOrCHIlVO 

Touching  is  the  present  participle  (see  Participial  Preposi- 
tions) of  the  verb  touch,  used  with  prepositional  force  in  the  sense 
of  relating  to,  concerning,  with  regard  to. 


toward  PREPOSITIONS  170 

There,  with  the  emperor, 
To  treat  of  high  affairs  touching  that  time. 

Shakespeare  K.  John  act  i,  sc.  1,  1.  102. 

Any  one  may  have  a  fancy,  and  a  squirrel  has  a  right  to  make 
up  his  mind  touching  a  catamount.   Cooper  Deer  slayer  ch.  1,  p.  22. 

TOWARD,  TOWARDS 

Toward  is  derived  from  the  Anglo-Saxon  to,  to,  plus  -weard, 
-ward,  a  suffix  denoting  motion  to  or  from.  It  is  thus  a  modified 
form  of  to,  never  reaching  the  full  force  of  the  latter  word,  but 
always  stopping  with  direction  or  approach,  while  to  indicates 
attainment  or  contact. 

As  in  other  cases,  towards  is  a  later  form,  due  to  adding  the 
adverbial  suffix  -es  (orig.  the  mark  of  a  gen.  case)  to  the  shorter 
toward,  ^  Skeat  Etym.  Diet. 

[Towards  is  somewhat  more  common  than  toward,  but  the 
two  words  are  interchangeable.  Standard  Dictionary.] 

I.  Of  place  or  space :  in  a  course  or  line  leading  to  ;  in  the 
direction  of  ;  opening,  facing,  looking,  or  situated  in  the  direction 
of ;  as,  he  was  marching  toward  London ;  the  window  opened 
toward  the  east ;  there  is  a  tract  of  fertile  land  toward  the  north. 

The  far  country,  toward  which  we  journey,  seems  nearer  to 
us,  and  the  way  less  dark  ;  for  thou  hast  gone  before. 

Longfellow  Hyperion  bk.  iv,  ch.  5,  p.  342. 

The  narrow  street  that  clamber'd  toward  the  mill. 

Tennyson  Enoch  Arden  st.  3. 
Preceded  by  the  beadle,  .  .  .  Hester  Prynne  set  forth  toward 
the  place  appointed  for  her  punishment. 

Hawthorne  Scarlet  Letter  ch.  2,  p.  65. 

Leslie  rises  with  a  grand  air  from  her  mother's  side  ....  and 
sweeps  toward  him.       Ho  wells  Out  of  the  Question  ch.  3,  p.  20. 

Two  horses  have  emerged  from  the  ruck,  and  are  sweeping, 
rushing,  storming,  towards  us,  almost  side  by  side. 

Holmes  Our  Hundred  Days  ch.  1,  p.  54. 

As  the  smoke  from  the  calumet  moves  westward,  I  behold  in  it 

nations  of  red  men,  moving  .  .  .  towards  the  caverns  of  the  sun. 

F.  S.  CozzENS  Sparrowgrass  Papers  ch.  12,  p.  172. 


171  Defined  and  Illustrated  toward 

Where  strata  .  .  .  dip  towards  an  axis,  forming  a  trough  or 
basin,  it  is  called  a  Syncline,  or  synclinal  axis. 

Arch.  Geikie  Text-Book  Geology  bk.  iv,  pt.  iv,  p.  517. 

II.  Of  time :  approaching ;  near  to  ;  about ;  nearly  ;  as,  it  is 
now  toward  noon. 

It  is  toward  evening  and  the  day  is  far  spent.      Luke  xxiv,  29. 

III.  In  derived  or  figurative  use  : 

1.  Aiming  at  or  contributing  to ;  having  as  a  goal,  aim,  or 
end ;  for  the  promotion,  help,  advancement,  or  furtherance  of ; 
in  the  direction  of ;  being  inclined  to ;  for ;  as,  a  contribution 
toward  an  endowment. 

The  purchase  of  Louisiana  showed  the  trend  of  events  toward 
nationality  to  be  stronger  than  the  avowed  purpose  of  the  party. 
H.  C.  Adams  Public  Debts  pt.  iii,  ch.  2,  p.  320. 

She  [Great  Britain]  will  call  on  them  [the  colonies]  to  contrib- 
ute toivard  supporting  the  burdens  they  have  helped  to  bring  on 
her,  and  they  will  answer  by  striking  off  all  dependence. 

Irving  Washington  vol.  i,  ch.  25,  p.  329. 

There  was  a  certain  drift  towards  Dissent  among  the  warmer 
spirits.  R.  W.  Church  Oxford  Movement  ch.  1,  p.  14. 

A  hopeful,  tender,  ti-ustful  looking  towards  the  Cross  will  keep 
back  the  thunder,  and  God  will  spare  us  when  he  makes  inquisi- 
tion for  blood.        J.  Parker  People's  Bible,  Exodus  ch.  12,  p.  73. 

A  current  in  people's  minds  sets  towards  new  ideas. 

Matthew  Arnold  Culture  arid  Anarchy  ch.  1,  p.  33. 

Herodotus  was  drawn  towards  the  most  romantic  and  poetic 
version  of  each  story,  and  what  he  admired  most  seemed  to  him 
the  likeliest  to  be  true. 

Rawlinson  Herodotus  vol.  i,  bk.  i,  p.  272,  note  9. 

2.  With  respect  to ;  in  relation  to  ;  in  reference  to  ;  respect- 
ing ;  regarding  ;  concerning  ;  as,  charity  toward  the  erring. 

She  .  .  .  had  remained  indifferent  and  fastidiously  critical 
towards  both  fresh  sprig  and  faded  bachelor. 

George  Eliot  Middlemarch  vol.  i,  ch.  12,  p.  130. 


under  PREPOSITIONS  172 

The  real  preparation  of  the  preacher's  personality  for  its  trans- 
missive  work  comes  by  the  opening  of  his  life  on  both  sides,  to- 
wards the  truth  of  God  and  toivards  the  needs  of  man. 

Phillips  Brooks  Lect.  on  Preaching  lect.  i.  p.  26. 

The  feeling  of  affection  of  a  dog  towards  his  master  is  combined 
with  a  sti'ong  sense  of  submission,  which  is  akin  to  fear. 

Darwin  Emotions  ch.  5,  p.  120. 

rNDER 

Under,  derived  from  the  Anglo-Saxon  under,  and  traced  back 
to  the  Grothic  undar  and  Old  Norse  undir  used  in  the  same  sense, 
is  one  of  the  root-words  of  our  language,  and  is  preserved  with 
slight  variations  of  form  in  all  Germanic  tongues. 

I,  Of  place  or  space  :  in  a  situation  lower  than  ;  below ; 
beneath. 

1.  In  a  place  lower  than  and  covered  by  ;  so  as  to  have  some- 
thing directly  above  ;  as,  the  purse  is  under  the  table  ;  the  guests 
under  my  roof ;  anywhere  under  heaven ;  a  tunnel  under  Broadway. 

Ere  a  cable  went  under  the  hoary  Atlantic, 

Or  the  word  Telegram  drove  grammarians  frantic. 

Owen  Meredith  Lucile  pt.  ii,  can.  4,  st.  5,  note. 

There  were  bright  coals  under  the  singing  tea-kettle  which 
hung  from  the  crane  by  three  or  four  long  pothooks. 

Sarah  Orne  Jewett  Strangers  and  Wayfarers  ch.  7,  p.  226. 

Each  day  they  camped  in  a  new  spot,  and  while  Lita  nibbled 
the  fresh  grass  at  her  ease  Miss  Celia  sketched  under  the  big  um- 
brella. LoL^SA  M.  Alcott  Under  the  Lilacs  ch.  12,  p.  125. 

On  under  the  arch  of  the  star-sown  skies. 

Joaquin  Miller  In  a  Gondola  st.  3. 

2,  In  a  place  lower  than,  though  not  covered  by;  at  the  foot  or 
bottom  of  ;  as,  the  beach  under  the  cliff ;  a  flower-bed  under  the 
window  ;  the  army  encamped  under  the  walls  of  the  fortress. 

Kenelm  retraced  his  steps  homeward  under  the  shade  of  his 
'old  hereditary  trees.' 

Bulwer-Lytton  Kenelm  Chillingly  bk.  i,  ch.  15,  p.  73. 


173  Defined  and  Illustrated  under 

The  sun  of  Austerlitz  showed  the  Czar  madly  sliding  his  splendid 
army  like  a  weaver's  shuttle,  from  his  right  hand  to  his  left,  under 
the  very  eyes  ...  of  Napoleon.       Kinglake  Eothen  ch.  8,  p.  68. 

Alas  I  for  the  rarity    Of  Christian  charity     Under  the  sun  I 

Hood  Bridge  of  Sighs  st.  9. 

II.  Of  time :  during  the  period  of ;  in  the  rule  or  reign  of; 
pending  the  administration  of  ;  during  ;  as,  this  system  prevailed 
under  the  Ptolemies  ;  luxury  prevailed  in  France  under  the  reign 
of  Louis  XIV. 

Under  no  English  government,  since  the  Reformation,  had 
there  been  so  little  religious  persecution. 

Macaulay  England  vol.  i,  ch.  1,  p.  128. 

III,  In  derived  and  figurative  use  : 

1.  Denoting  inferiority:  lower  than  in  quality,  character, 
rank,  etc. ;  less  than  in  number,  degree,  age,  value,  or  amount ; 
inferior  to  ;  below  ;  as,  he  is  under  twenty  ;  an  officer  under  the 
rank  of  colonel ;  he  is  under  age. 

This  conversation  was  not  ended  under  five  audiences,  each  of 
several  hours.  Swift  WorkSj  Gulliver  pt.  ii,  ch.  6,  p.  155. 

2,  Denoting  dependence,  protection,  or  subordination :  subject 
to  the  dominion,  influence,  guidance,  instruction,  obligation, 
operation,  or  employment  of;  as,  under  British  authority;  under 
foreign  influence  ;  under  the  American  flag ;  under  oath  ;  under 
compulsion  ;  under  the  circumstances  ;  under  fire  ;  under  medical 
treatment ;  men  under  arms ;  (of  a  vessel)  under  sail,  under 
steam,  etc. 

[Note. — It  has  been  questioned  whether  we  should  use  the 
common  phrase  ^^  under  the  circumstances."  or  whether  we  should 
not  rather  say  *'m  the  circumstances."  It  will  be  seen  that 
under,  as  denoting  dependence,  is  the  more  expressive  word  in 
this  connection.] 

Both  Scotland  and  Ireland,  indeed,  had  been  subjugated  by  the 
Plantagenets,  but  neither  country  had  been  patient  under  the 
yoke.  Macaulay  England  vol.  i,  ch.  1.  p.  50. 


under  PREPOSITIONS  174 

Though  I  know  neither  the  time  nor  the  manner  of  the  death  I 
am  to  die,  I  am  not  at  all  solicitous  about  it ;  because  I  am  sure 
that  he  [God]  knows  them  both,  and  that  he  will  not  fail  to  com- 
fort and  support  me  under  them. 

Addison  Spectator  Mar.  8,  1710-11. 

The  only  branch  of  knowledge  which  the  Arabians  ever  raised 
to  a  science  was  astronomy,  which  began  to  be  cultivated  under 
the  caliphs  about  the  middle  of  the  eighth  century. 

Buckle  Hist.  Civilization  vol.  i,  ch.  2,  p.  35,  note. 

Winter  snow  under  the  action  of  thawing  and  freezing  tem- 
peratures in  alternation  becomes  granular,  as  we  often  observe  in 
old  snow,  especially  in  early  spring. 

WiNCHELL  Walks  and  Talks  ch.  3,  p.  22. 

The  American  travelling  in  Europe  chafes  under  the  restraints  of 
administration.    Depew  Orations  and  Speeches,  Feb.  22^  1881  p.  47. 

It  owed  its  existence  to  the  masterly  organizing  abilities  of 

McCleJlan,  and  ended  the  war  under  the  superb  generalship  of 

Grant.    Depew  Orations  and  Speeches^  Reunion  of  Army  of 
Potomac,  1887  p.  154. 

Their  work  in  the  open  air,  under  all  weathers,  is  calculated  to 
make  them  [husbandmen]  hardy. 

Brougham  British  Constitution  ch.  20,  p.  380. 

It  was  fortunate  for  the  Constitution  that  the  patriotism  of  the 
Peers,  acting  under  the  sage  counsels  of  the  Duke  of  Wellington, 
prevented  us  from  having  recourse  to  a  measure  so  full  of  peril. 
Brougham  British  Constitution  ch.  17,  p.  269. 

Under  the  old  Greek  and  Roman  habits  of  mind,  the  stranger 
was  mainly  looked  upon  as  a  barbarian  and  enemy. 

C.  L.  Brace  Gesta  Christi  pt.  ii,  ch.  16,  p.  190. 

I  found  sleep  was  out  of  the  question,  under  the  incessant  at- 
tacks of  a  swarm  of  peculiarly  ravenous  mosquitoes. 

C.  L.  Brace  Hungary  in  1851  ch.  15,  p.  121. 

Over  fifteen  hundred  barrels  were  packed  in  1884,  and  under 
the  new  regime,  the  Kasa-an  fishery  has  distanced  its  rivals. 

Elizabeth  R.  Scidmore  Alaska  ch.  4,  p.  85. 

Self-interest  is  the  ruling  passion,  whether  under  free  or  des- 
potic governments. 

James  Monroe  The  Peop'e  the  Sovereigns  ch.  2,  p.  163. 


175  Defined  and  Illustrated  under 

3.  Denoting  shelter  or  protection :  covered  by ;  shielded, 
screened,  or  defended  by  ;  beneath  ;  as,  the  fleet  was  moored  un- 
der the  guns  of  the  fort ;  under  his  mother's  wing  ;  under  favor  ; 
under  leave. 

Here,  under  leave  of  Brutus  and  the  rest,  .  .  . 
Come  I  to  speak  in  Caesar's  funeral. 

Shakespeare  Julius  Ccesar  act  iii,  sc.  8,  1.  86. 

My  lords,  then,  under  favour,  pardon  me, 
If  I  speak  like  a  captain. 

Shakespeare  Timon  of  Athens  act  iii,  sc.  5,  1.  41. 

4.  Denoting  concealment,  disguise,  or  the  like :  with  the  as- 
sumption of ;  assuming ;  as,  under  the  mask  of  friendship ;  under 
pretense  of  helping  ;  under  an  assumed  name. 

The  Jew  and  the  Christian  who  entered  on  such  themes  [atroc- 
ities committed  by  the  Government]  could  only  do  so  under  the 
disguise  of  a  cryptograph.  Farrar  Christianity  ch.  5,  p.  46. 

Revelations  .  .  .  which  he  would  rather  have  hidden  under 
the  ashes  of  the  past.         H.  W.  Mabie  My  Study  Fire  ch.  1,  p.  5. 

Original  vigor  was  still  visible  under  all  the  rust  aiid  batter  of 
seventy  years. 

Bayard  Taylor  At  Home  and  Abroad  vol.  i,  ch.  2,  p.  16. 

I  here  use  the  word  sycophant  in  its  original  sense,  as  a  wretch 
who  flatters  the  prevailing  party  by  informing  against  his  neigh- 
bors, under  pretense  that  they  are  exporters  of  prohibited  figs  or 
fancies.        Coleridge  Works,  Biog.  Lit.  in  vol.  iii,  ch.  10,  p.  286. 

5.  Denoting  authority,  sanction,  etc. :  by  virtue  of ;  in  the 
name  of ;  authorized,  substantiated,  attested,  or  waiTanted  by ; 
as,  under  the  authority  of  the  United  States ;  under  my  hand  and 
seal ;  under  his  own  signature. 

[Note. — Over  is  now  often  used  in  connection  with  one's  name, 
signature,  or  the  like  ;  but  this  is  a  more  recent  usage  and  more 
local  and  literal  than  that  of  under.  *'  Under  one's  signature  "  de- 
notes not  position  but  authority  and  attestation,  and  is  thus  the 
more  expressive  phrase.] 


underneath  PREPOSITIONS  176 

John  Paul  Jones,  with  his  own  hands,  raised  the  first  Ameri- 
oaH  naval  flag,  under  a  salute  of  thirteen  guns. 

J.  S.  C.  Abbott  Paul  Jones  ch.  1,  p.  21. 

6.  In  conformity  to  ;  in  accordance  with ;  as,  under  the  terms 
of  the  contract ;  under  the  ruies  of  the  game. 

The  Book  of  Daniel,  and  the  Apocalypse  .  .  .  contain  the  first 
germs  of  the  great  idea  of  the  succession  of  ages,  of  the  continu- 
ous growth  of  empires  and  races  under  sl  law  of  Divine  Provi- 
dence. A.  P.  Stanley  Jewish  Church  vol.  i,  lect.  xx,  p.  414. 

Monarchy,  Aristocracy,  and  Timocracy  .  .  .  are,  under  the 
appropriat  e  circumstances,  good  forms  of  government. 

Ueberweg  Hist.  Philos.  tr.  by  G.  S.  Morris,  vol.  i,  §  50,  p.  170. 

7,  Denoting  classification,  arrangement,  etc. :  with  reference  to 
(class,  section,  division,  or  the  like) ;  as,  to  treat  the  subject  under 
four  heads ;  these  will  be  considered  under  a  later  topic ;  they  have 
been  classed  under  the  Coleoptera ;  under  the  name  of  Cryptogamia. 

Blessings  may  appear  under  the  shape  of  pain,  losses,  and  dis- 
appointments. Addison  The  Guardian  July  25,  1713. 

Those  poems  which  are  classed  under  the  appellation  of  Cyclic, 
the  Hymns,  or  Proemia,  as  the  ancients  termed  them. 

R.  W.  Browne  Hist.  Class.  Lit.  bk.  i,  ch.  6,  p.  93. 

In  March,  1868,  the  first  woman's  club  of  America  was  organ- 
ized under  the  name  of  Sorosis  .  .  .  which,  in  the  pursuit  of  a 
name  which  should  not  stand  in  the  way  of  any  object  desired, 
Mrs.  Croly  found  in  a  botanical  dictionary. 

Johnson's  Univ.  Encyc.  vol.  iv,  p.  377. 

A  certain  quantum  of  power  must  always  exist  in  the  commu- 
nity, in  some  hands,  and  under  some  appellation. 

Burke  Revolution  in  France,  French  Clergy  in  §  1,  p.  167. 

The  Arabs  know  it  v/ell  under  the  name  Waran  (whence  the 
generic  name  Varanus  is  derived). 

Albert  GtJNTHER  in  Encyc.  Brit.  9th  ed.,  vol.  xiv,  p.  734. 

IJNDERIVEIATH 

Underneath  is  from  the  Anglo-Saxon  under  plus  nethe,  lower, 
as  in  nether. 

Of  place,  almost  exclusively :  directly  below,  beneath,  or  un- 


177  Defined  and  Illustrated  up 

der ;  as,  underneath  the  ground :  rarely  used  in  a  metaphorical 
sense,  and  even  then  keeping  the  local  and  literal  meaning  prom- 
inent ;  as,  to  stagger  underneath  a  burden. 

Pray  God,  she  prove  not  masculine  ere  long ; 
If  underneath  the  standard  of  the  French 
She  carry  armour,  as  she  hath  begun. 

Shakespeare  1  K.  Henry  VI.  act  ii,  sc.  1,  1.  23. 

And  there,  underneath  the  light,  lay  five  or  six  great  salmon, 
looking  up  at  the  flame  with  their  great  goggle  eyes. 

KiNGSLEY  Water-Babies  ch.  4,  p.  147. 

UP 

Up  is  from  the  Anglo-Saxon  wj?,  upp,  uppe,  used  in  the  same 
general  sense.     Up  is  the  preposition  of  ascent. 

[In  modern  English  this  preposition  is  used  of  motion  and 

direction  upvrards,  but  albo  occurs  with  continuous  movement  or 

direction  [even]  on  level  ground,  .  .  .  which  was  originally  ruled 

by  the  perspective  rising  of  a  plain  in  sight  of  a  person  marching. 

Maetzner  English  Grammar  vol.  ii,  p.  315.] 

Of  place  exclusively : 

1.  With  reference  to  motion :  from  a  lower  to  a  higher  point 
or  place  on  or  along  ;  toward  a  higher  point  of ;  along  the  line  or 
ascent  of  ;  from  the  mouth  toward  the  source  of  (a  stream) ;  from 
the  coast  toward  the  interior  of  (a  country)  as  being  higher ;  as,  to 
climb  up  a  tree ;  to  sail  up  a  river ;  I  saw  him  coming  up  the  road. 

That  sprightly  Scot  of  Scots,  Douglas,  that  runs  o'  horseback 
up  a  hill  perpendicular. 

Shakespeare  l  K.  Henry  IV.  act  ii,  sc.  4,  1.  355. 

The  patient  ass,  up  flinty  paths.     Plods  with  his  weary  load. 

Macaulay  Prophecy  of  Capys  st.  16. 

Bogus,  in  the  sense  of  worthless,  is  undoubtedly  ours,  but  is,  I 

more  than  suspect,  a  corruption  of  the  French  *  bagasse'  (from 

low  Latin   'bagasea'),  which  travelled  up  the  Mississippi  from 

New  Orleans,  where  it  was  used  for  the  refuse  of  the  sugai*-cane. 

Lowell  Biglow  Papers  second  series,  int.,  p.  24^ 

12 


via  Prepositions  178 

■ 

He  passed  up  the  narrow  aisle  of  benches. 

Bret  Harte  Cressy  ch.  1,  p.  3. 

Why,  there  was  not  a  slope 
Up  which  he  had  not  fear'd  the  antelope. 

Keats  Endymion  bk.  iv,  st.  38. 

2.  With  reference  to  position  or  situation :  at,  on,  or  near  a 
higher  place  or  part  of ;  on  the  height  or  top  of ;  at,  on,  or  near 
some  point  regarded  as  more  advanced ;  as,  his  house  is  up  the 
street ;  the  next  station  up  the  line  ;  a  farm  up  the  Hudson. 

Villas  and  villages  stretched  on  every  side  up  the  ascent  of 
Vesuvius,  not  nearly  then  so  steep  or  lofty  as  at  present. 

Bulwer-Lytton  Pompeii  bk,  ii,  p.  96. 

VIA 

Via  is  from  the  Latin,  being  the  ablative  of  the  word  via,  **  a 
way,"  and  signifying  "  by  the  way,"  or  as  used  in  English,  *'  by  the 
way  of."  It  is  said  of  the  route  traveled  over,  or  of  any  place 
passed  through  ;  as,  ship  via  the  Pennsylvania  Railroad ;  to  go  to 
Cincinnati  via  Washington. 

This  is  a  usage  which  is  to  be  condemned  on  strict  rules  of 
grammatical  construction,  as  much  as  the  corresponding  use  of 
anti,  ex,  per,  etc.  But  where  one  word  of  three  letters  will  say 
what  would  otherwise  take  four  words,  "by  the  way  of,"  the  short 
form  is  sure,  in  the  period  of  telegraph,  telephone,  and  typewriter, 
to  hold  its  place  when  once  introduced.  It  is  a  tribute  to  the 
comprehensive  genius,  the  flexibility,  and  the  vitality  of  the 
English  language  that  it  can  thus  adopt  a  needed  or  convenient 
word  from  any  tongue  and  make  it  thoroughly  at  home  v/ith  the 
vernacular  terms. 

WITH 

With  is  from  the  Anglo-Saxon  with,  which  signifies  "over 
against,"  "opposite";  and,  as  persons  or  things  may  be  over 
against  or  opposite  each  other  either  in  harmony  or  in  conflict,  the 
word  with  came  to  have  the  two  meanings  of  against  and  beside; 
to  have,  i.  e.,  the  meaning  of  opposition  and  that  of  association, 


1T9  Defined  and  Illustrated  witii 

which  has  become  the  controlling  sense  of  the  English  with.  The 
predominance  of  this  latter  sense  is  largely  due  to  the  further 
fact  that  with  takes  the  place  of  the  Anglo-Saxon  mid  (equiv- 
alent to  the  German  mit),  in  which  the  sense  of  association  was 
the  controlling  one.  The  sense  of  "against"  appears  in  the 
English  ivith  in  connection  with  words  denoting  fighting,  war, 
conflict,  and  the  like. 

[It  is  an  interesting  fact,  however,  that  the  Latin  cum,  strictly 
denoting  association,  is  used  in  precisely  the  same  way  as  the 
English  with  of  hostile  relations,  cum  hoste  confligere  meaning  "to 
fight  with  [i.  €.,  against]  an  enemy  " ;  but  the  Greek  prepositions  of 
association  avv  and  /mera  when  used  of  conflict  denote  cooperation, 
avv  Tti/i  /maxeo-t^at  meaning  to  fight  at  or  on  one's  side.  The  Roman 
fought  with  his  enemy,  that  is,  against  him.  The  Greek  fought 
with  his  friend,  that  is,  on  his  side,  for  him.] 

I.  Of  place  or  space :  with  is  not  used  distinctively  of  place, 
though  the  local  idea  inheres  in  and  underlies  many  of  its  mean- 
ings, as  in  the  sense  of  companionship,  etc.  ;  as,  sit  here  with  me. 

[The  purely  local  meaning  over  against,  beside,  was  soon  lost 
in  English ;  the  decided  and  sole  reference  to  position  in  space  is 
at  least  no  longer  to  be  perceived. 

Maetzner  English  Grammar  vol.  ii,  p.  403.] 

II,  Of  time :  denoting  simultaneousness ;  at  the  time  of ;  in 
the  period,  day,  hour,  moment,  or  instant  of ;  as,  to  wake  with 
the  dawn  ;  his  influence  ceased  with  his  death. 

With  every  minute  you  do  change  a  mind. 

Shakespeare  Coriolanus  act.  i,  sc.  1,  1.  182. 

Marriage  can  seldom  be  celebrated  simultaneously  ivith  be- 
trothment  or  engagement. 

Parsons  Contracts  vol.  i,  pt.  i,  bk.  iii,  ch.  10,  §  1,  p.  543. 

The  proper  era  of  English  newspapers,  at  least  of  those  con- 
taining domestic  intelligence,  commences  with  the  Long  Parlia- 
ment. Craik  Eng.  Lit.  and  Lang.,  Newspapers  vol.  ii,  p.  83. 

The  swallow  with  summer    Will  wing  o'er  the  seas. 

Hood  The  Exile  st.  1. 


withi  Prepositions  180 

With  every  anguish  of  your  earthly  part 
The  spirit's  sight  grows  clearer. 

Lowell  On  the  Death  of  a  Friend's  Child  st.  2. 

Dream  not,  with  the  rising  sun,    Bugles  here  shall  sound  reveille. 

Scott  Lady  of  the  Lake  can.  1,  st.  32. 

III.  Of  various  relations : 

1.   Denoting  association,  accompaniment,  or  connection : 

(a)  In  a  relation  of  joint  activity,  cooperation,  companionship, 
mixture,  etc. :  in  the  company  of ;  on  the  side  of ;  so  as  to  have 
fellowship,  union,  or  harmony  concerning ;  as,  to  eat,  work,  read, 
or  visit  with  another ;  to  side  with  one ;  I  wish  to  consult  imth 
you. 

They  enslave  their  children's  children  who  make  compromise  with 
sin.  Lowell  Present  Crisis  st.  9. 

She  could  not  reconcile  the  anxieties  of  a  spiritual  life  involv- 
ing eternal  consequences,  with  a  keen  interest  in  gimp  and  arti- 
ficial protrusions  of  drapery. 

George  Eliot  Middlemarch  vol.  i,  ch.  1,  p.  10. 

The  digestive  organs,  unfortunately,  are  the  first  to  sympathize 
loith  any  mental  worry. 

N.  E.  Yorke-Davies  in  Annals  of  Hygiene  Sept.,  1893,  p.  534. 

The  Florentine  doctor  came  down  the  street .  .  .  with  a  blacka- 
moor who  bore  a  great  hamper  which  contained  his  medicines. 

E.  E.  Hale  In  His  Name  ch.  2,  p.  21. 

The  loyalty  of  this  gentleman  was  altogether  of  a  calculating 
nature,  and  was  intimately  connected  with  what  he  considered  his 
fealty  to  himself.  Cooper  Pilot  ch.  16,  p.  188. 

The  roar  of  wintering  streams 
That  mix  their  own  foam  with  the  yellower  sea. 

Swinburne  Atalanta  in  Calydon  st.  99. 

We  sat  down  together  on  the  dry,  water-worn  pebbles,  mixed 
ivWi  fragments  of  broken  shells  and  minute  pieces  of  wreck,  that 
strewed  the  opening  of  the  cave.  Hugh  Miller  in  Wilson's  Tales 
of  a.e  r orders  in  vol.  ii,  ch.  1,  p.  69. 


1§1  Defined  and  Illustrated  with 

The  wide  extent  of  salt  marshes  and  meadows  interspersed 
with  shallow  land-locked  washes  and  lagoons. 

H.  W.  Herbert  Field  Sports,  Bay  Shooting  in  vol.  ii,  p.  7. 

[Note. — In  the  conjoining  of  unlike  or  contrasted  objects  or 
qualities,  icith  has  often  nearly  the  meaning  of  despite,  notwith- 
standing. 

With  all  his  lucidity  of  statement,  Hamilton  was  always  con- 
cise. H.  C.  Lodge  Alex.  Hamilton  ch.  5,  p.  89.] 

ip)  Denoting  guardianship,  protection,  care,  oversight,  etc.: 
(1)  In  the  care  of ;  under  the  protection  of ;  at  the  disposal  of  ;  as, 
to  leave  a  child  with  a  nurse ;  to  leave  one's  purse  with  a  friend ; 
that  matter  rests  with  you. 

The  youngest  is  this  day  with  our  father.  Oen.  xlii,  13. 

Lo,  I  am  with  you  alway,  even  unto  the  end  of  the  world. 

Matt,  xxviii,  20. 

Factors  and  Brokers  are  both  and  equally  agents,  but  with  this 
ditference :  the  Factor  is  intrusted  with  the  property  which  is  the 
subject-matter  of  the  agency;  the  Broker  is  only  employed  to 
make  a  bargain  in  relation  to  it. 

Parsons  Contracts  vol.  i,  pt.  i,  bk.  i,  ch.  4,  §  1,  p.  78. 

(2)  Exercising  care  or  protection  over ;  being  a  guard,  guide, 
or  helper  to ;  as,  to  side  with  the  oppressed ;  God  be  with  you. 

And  the  angel  of  the  Lord  appeared  unto  him,  and  said  unto 
him.  The  Lord  is  with  thee,  thou  mighty  man  of  valor. 

And  Gideon  said  unto  him,  O  my  Lord,  if  the  Lord  be  with  us, 
why  then  is  all  this  befallen  us  ?  Judges  vi,  12-13. 

(3)  Under  the  direction  of ;  in  the  service  of ;  enrolled  in  or 
belonging  to  ;  in  attendance  upon ;  as,  he  is  with  a  banking-house ; 
he  is  with  the  army. 

[Note.— In  business  relations,  the  expression  with  a  house, 
fiym,  or  the  like  never  denotes  partnership  in,  but  always  employ- 
ment by,  partnership  being  expressed  by  o/.] 

Saul  arose,  and  went  down  to  the  wilderness  of  Ziph,  having 
three  thousand  chosen  men  of  Israel  with  him.        1  Sam,  xxvi,  2. 


witii  Prepositions  182 

(c)  In  the  class  or  group  of ;  numbered  among ;  placed,  ranked, 
or  ranged  beside ;  among ;  as,  the  amphioxus  must  be  classed 
vnth  the  vertebrates ;  your  name  was  mentioned  with  others ; 
North  America  tvith  South  America  constitutes  the  western 
hemisphere. 

The  idea  underlying  all  classification  is  that  of  similarity. 
When  we  group  an  object  with  certain  others,  we  do  so  because  in 
some  or  all  of  its  characters  it  resembles  them. 

Spencer  Psychology  vol.  ii,  §  310,  p.  117. 

The  tart  is  national  vnth  the  English,  as  the  pie  is  national  with 
us.  Holmes  Our  Hundred  Days  ch.  8,  p.  307. 

(d)  Denoting  some  accompanying  condition,  feeling,  act,  cir- 
cumstance, or  the  like  :  accompanied  by  ;  affected  by  ;  having  as 
an  attendant  circumstance  ;  as,  fire  and  smoke  with  intense  heat ; 
the  sea  surges  with  ceaseless  motion. 

Contrition  is  the  very  sorrow  that  a  man  receiveth  in  his  heart 
for  his  sins,  with  sad  purpose  .  .  .  never  more  to  do  sin. 

Chaucer  Canterbury  Tales,  Parson's  Tale  div.  i. 

She  was  still  leaning  on  the  gate  toith  one  foot  on  the  lower 
rail  and  her  chin  cupped  in  the  hollow  of  her  hand. 

Bret  Harte  Cressy  ch.  3,  p.  51. 

For  days,  her  touching,  foolish  lines 
We  mused  on  with  conjectural  fantasy. 

E.  B.  Browning  Aurora  Leigh  bk.  iv,  1.  988. 

Overhead  was  a  bower  of  climbing  Waxwork,  with  its  yellowish 
pods  scarce  disclosing  their  scarlet  berries.  T.  W.  Higginson 
Out' Door  Papers,  Procession  of  the  Flowers  p.  335. 

The  speaking  of  a  falsehood  is  not  a  lie,  if  it  be  not  spoken  unth 
an  intent  to  deceive.    J.  Wesley  Sermons  vol.  ii,  ser.  Ixxxii,  p.  450. 

A  haughty  high  soul,  yet  tuith  various  flaws,  or  rather  udth  one 

many-branched  flaw  and  crack  running  through  the  texture  of  it. 

Carlyle  Past  and  Present  bk.  ii,  ch.  14,  p.  02. 

2.  Denoting  an  endowment,  possession,  or  characteristic : 

(a)  Having  ;  possessing  ;  conveying ;  characterized  by  ;  as,  a 

man  with  good  sense ;  a  cow  with  long  horns ;  Egypt  urith  its 

pyramids  ;  a  vase  with  handles. 


183  Defined  and  Illustrated  with 

[Note. —  With  in  such  use  often  approaches  closely  the  sense 
of  of.  We  may  say  either  a  man  of  good  sense  or  a  man  vnth 
good  sense,  of  denoting  the  quality  more  as  a  possession,  and  imth 
more  as  an  accompaniment.] 

The  school  was  in  a  tall,  stately  building,  vnth  a  high  cupola 
on  the  top. 

D.  G.  Mitchell  Reveries  of  a  Bachelor ,  School  Days  p.  172. 

The  Bear  has  a  well-developed  paw  vrith  a  flexible  wrist. 

Agassiz  Methods  of  Study  ch.  8,  p.  114. 

And  bid  creation  doff  its  withered  leaves. 
To  clothe  itself  with  spring. 

BoNAR  My  Old  Letters  bk.  v,  1.  721. 

The  morning  star  .  .  .  ivith  flaming  locks  bedight. 

Spenser  Faerie  Queene  bk.  i,  can.  12,  st.  21. 

Meantime  the  other  stood 
With  wide  gray  eyes  still  reading  the  blank  air. 

Lowell  Glance  Behind  the  Curtain  st.  4. 

In  the  centre  .  .  .  stood  the  Indian  metropolis,  with  its  gor- 
geous tiara  of  pyramids  and  temples. 

Prescott  Conquest  of  Mexico  vol.  iii,  bk.  vi,  ch.  2,  p.  31. 

(6)  In  a  manner  expressing,  indicating,  or  pervaded  by ;  as,  he 
worked  with  energy ;  he  gazed  on  the  scene  with  deep  dejection. 

Brushed  uyith  extreme  flounce    The  circle  of  the  sciences. 

E.  B.  Browning  Aurora  Leigh  bk.  i,  1.  404. 

The  fox-hounds  trotting  sedately  on  .  .  .  gave  tongue  with  the 
deep  notes  of  their  species. 

Elizabeth  B.  Custer  Following  the  Guidon  ch.  22,  p.  333. 

The  play  ["As  You  Like  It"]  is  instinct  t<?2Y/i  woodland  asso- 
ciations ;  the  spirit  of  the  place  is  upon  its  inhabitants. 

H.  N.  Hudson  Lect,  on  Shakespeare  vol.  i,  lect.  vii,  p.  278. 

Dunning  8  cross-examination  of  this  villain  was  carried  on 
with  an  indignant  causticity  which  was  long  reckoned  among  his 
finest  efforts.  Geo.  Oiioly  G4org6  IV.  ch.  4,  p.  36. 

Pitt  pressed  on  every  expedition  with  a  calculated  and  saga- 
cious audacity,  and  his  imperious  will  broke  down  every  obstacle. 
Lecky  Eng,  in  the  Eighteenth  Cent,  vol.  il,  ch.  8,  p.  540. 


with  Prepositions  184 

The  Archbishop  of  New  York  denies  with  emphasis  that  there 
is  any  such  thing  as  a  Culturkampf  either  existing  or  imminent 
in  these  United  States.     New-York  Times  Aug.  5,  1882,  p.  4,  col.  4. 

3.  Denoting  means,  instrument,  cause,  material,  price,  acces- 
sory, etc. :  by ;  by  means  of ;  making  use  of ;  by  the  use  or  em- 
ployment of ;  as,  to  load  a  ship  with  coal ;  to  chop  wood  w^th  an 
ax  ;  to  entertain  company  with  music  ;  a  ring  set  with  diamonds. 

Feed  me  with  food  convenient  for  me.  Prov.  xxx,  8. 

A  population  sodden  with  drink,  steeped  in  vice,  eaten  up  by 
every  social  and  physical  malady,  these  are  the  denizens  of  Dark- 
est England,  Booth  Darkest  England  pt.  i,  ch.  1,  p.  14. 

Earth's  crammed  with  heaven. 
And  every  common  bush  afire  with  God. 

E.  B.  Browning  Aurora  Leigh  bk.  vii,  1.  821. 

No  one  can  see  it  [the  decay  of  imperial  tombs]  without  being 
impressed  with  the  reflection  that  the  worship  of  parents  and  em- 
perors alike  is  no  longer  an  active  cult  in  China. 

J.  H.  Wilson  China  ch.  14,  p.  225. 

We  are  at  once  struck  with  a  marked  change  which  takes  place 
...  in  the  composition  of  Parliament. 

Green  Short  Hist.  Eng.  People  ch.  5,  §  2,  p.  247. 

Others  .  .  .  are  overhung,  whole  months  and  years,  with  a 
dreadfully  oppressive  gloom,  .  .  .  never  at  all  to  know  that  this 
gloom  is  in  their  liver. 

Bushnell  Moral  Uses  of  Dark  Things  ch.  12,  p.  257. 

One  asks  one's  self  loith  astonishment  how  a  doctrine  so  benign 
as  that  of  Christ  can  have  incurred  misrepresentations  so  mon- 
strous. Matthew  Arnold  Essays  in  Criticism,  Marcus  Aure- 
lius  in  first  series,  p.  267. 

The  splendid  cathedral  spire  flamed  nightly  with  three  hun- 
di-ed  burning  cressets.     M©tley  Dutch  Itepub,  vol.  i,  pt.  i,  p.  207. 

With  a  great  sum  obtained  I  this  freedom.  Acts  xxii,  28. 

[Note. — In  its  use  regarding  price,  with  is  nearly  equivalent 
to  for,  the  latter  being  the  more  common.] 


185  Defined  and  Illustrated  with 

4.  DenotiDg  result  or  consequence :  because  of ;  through ;  as, 
to  tremble  with  fear ;  crushed  with  sorrow  ;  he  clapped  his  hands 
with  glee. 

I  bruised  my  shin  the  other  day  loith  playing  at  sword  and 
dagger  with  a  master  of  fence. 

Shakespeare  Merry  Wives  of  Windsor  act  i,  sc.  1. 

Witch-elms  that  counterchange  the  floor 
Of  this  flat  lawn  icith  dusk  and  bright. 

Tennyson  In  Memoriam  Ixxxviii,  st.  1. 

Our  Savior  has  brought  out  very  distinctly  the  fact  that  the 
misapplication  of  small  abilities  will  meet  with  condign  punish- 
ment. W.  B.  Stevens  Parables  Unfolded  p.  88. 

I  am  so  worn  away  with  fears  and  sorrows, 
So  wintered  with  the  tempests  of  affliction. 

John  Ford  Lover's  Melancholy  act  iv,  sc.  3. 

Why  blanches  Sir  Walter  with  fright  ? 

Saxe  Ghost  in  Armor  pt.  ii,  st.  8. 

They  [Chatham's  speeches]  blaze  with  the  authentic  fire  of 
imagination.  Mathews  Oratory  and  Orators  p.  233. 

'5.  In  respect  of ;  in  regard  to ;  in  relation  to ;  as  regards ;  as 
to ;  as,  do  not  be  angry  with  me ;  that  is  the  way  with  him  ;  what 
is  your  business  with  me  ?  to  meddle  with  things  that  do  not  con- 
cern you. 

Essex  .  .  .  taxed  his  perfidious  friend  unth  unkindness  and  in- 
sincerity. MA.CAULAY  Essays,  Bacon  p.  260. 

Thou  needst  be  surelier  God  to  bear  loith  us 
Than  even  to  have  made  us ! 

E.  B.  Browning  Aurora  Leigh  bk.  vii,  1.  1029. 

Ay  me  !  what  perils  do  environ 

The  man  that  meddles  with  cold  iron  I 

Butler  Hudibras  pt.  i,  can.  3, 1.  1. 

Vain  minds  would  still  be  tampering  with  the  greatest  affairs. 
Leighton  Works,  Led.  on  Rom.  xii,  3  in  vol.  ii,  p.  92. 

We  know  that  something  is  wrong  with  our  nerves,  when  they 
act  against  our  will.  R.  C.  Jebb  Bentley  ch.  13,  p.  210. 


with  Prepositions  186 

Such  is  ever  the  case  with  these  worthies  and  unth  nearly  all 
the  natives  of  South  Africa. 

Gordon  Gumming  Hunter's  Life  vol.  i,  ch.  10,  p.  184. 

Even  a  prospective  brother-in-law  may  be  an  oppression  if  he 

will  always  be  presupposing  too  good  an  understanding  with  you. 

George  Eliot  Middlemarch  vol.  i,  ch.  3,  p.  33. 

6,  In  the  region  or  sphere  of ;  from  the  standpoint  of ;  in 
the  experience  or  estimation  of ;  in  the  sight  of ;  in  the  case  of ; 
among ;  as,  with  you  there  is  no  medium ;  it  is  night  in  the  Orient 
when  it  is  day  with  us. 

So  great  a  favourite  is  the  Cairngorum  with  the  people  of  Scot- 
land, that  brooches,  pins,  bracelets,  and  a  variety  of  ornaments 
are  made  with  this  stone.  Ure  Diet. 

People  grieve  and  bemoan  themselves,  but  it  is  not  half  so  bad 
with  them  as  they  say. 

Emerson  Essays,  Experience  in  second  series,  p.  45. 

There  is  something  so  captivating  in  personal  bravery,  that, 
with  the  common  mass  of  mankind,  it  takes  the  lead  of  most 
other  merits.  Irving  Knickerbocker  bk.  vi,  ch.  6,  p.  360. 

It  is  thus  with  the  vulgar ;  and  all  men  are  as  the  vulgar  in 
what  they  do  not  understand. 

Burke  Sublime  and  Beautiful  pt.  ii,  §  4,  p.  43. 

Socrates  thinks  with  the  Christian  :  Mr.  Volney,  with  the  deist. 
Shall  we  symbolize  with  the  Greek  or  with  the  Frank  ? 

G.  S.  Faber  Difficulties  of  Infidelity  §  1,  p.  15. 

With  a  pedant  of  such  magnitude,  who  would  stake  a  kingdom 
for  the  cut  of  a  churchman's  cope. 

J.  S.  Blackie  Lay  Sermons  ch.  8,  p.  247. 

7,  Denoting  analogy,  resemblance,  or  proportion  :  in  the  man- 
ner of ;  at  the  same  time  or  rate  as ;  in  proportion  to ;  according 
to ;  like ;  as  ;  as,  with  Berkeley  he  denied  the  existence  of  matter; 
his  influence  increases  with  his  wealth. 

[In  mathematics,  with  is  used  to  note  a  function  that  is  not  in 
exact  proportion  to  its  variable,  as  distinguished  from  as ;  as,  the 
length  varies  with,  but  not  as,  the  temperature.] 


1§7  Defined  and  Illustrated  witu 

Mars  has  been  an  interesting  object  of  telescopic  research  from 
the  fact  that  it  is  the  planet  which  exhibits  the  greatest  analogy 
with  our  earth.      Newcomb  Popular  Astron.  pt.  iii,  ch.  3,  p.  321. 

Honorable  industiy  travels  the  same  road  with  duty. 

Smiles  Self-Help  eh.  2,  p.  41. 

As  retorts  are  expensive  in  comparison  vnth  flasks,  they  are 
less  used  than  formerly. 

Eliot  and  Stoker  Inorganic  Chemistry  app.,  §  18,  p.  28. 

You  ride  quietly  along,  and  the  saice  follows  you,  walking  or 
keeping  pace  with  your  gentle  trot,  as  the  case  may  be. 

F.  Marion  Crawford  Mr.  Isaacs  ch  4,  p.  62. 

A  comparison  of  Wickliffe  ivith  the  versions  of  the  sixteenth 
century  would  show  that  in  many  cases  the  Early  English  sub- 
junctive had  been  replaced  by  the  Elizabethan  *  shall.' 

E.  A.  Abbott  Shakespearian  Grammar  1"  348,  p.  247. 

It  would  be  absurd  ...  to  set  down  the  double  marriages  of 
patriarchal  times  in  the  same  moral  rank  vrith  modern  cases  of 
bigamy.  Martineau  Studies  of  Christianity,  Ethics  of  Chris- 
tendom p.  318. 

8,  Denoting  opposition,  competition,  or  hostility :  in  opposition 
to ;  opposing ;  facing ;  against ;  as,  to  fight  icith  an  enemy  ;  to 
dispute  with  an  opponent ;  to  struggle  unth  temptation. 

When  Christianity  comes  in  collision  with  wrong,  evil,  and  not 
Christianity,  is  to  compromise. 

Joseph  Cook  Orthodoxy  led.  x,  p.  300. 

Shelley's  feud  with  Christianity  was  a  craze  derived  from  some 
early  wrench  of  his  understanding. 

De  Quincey  Essays  on  the  Poets,  Shelley  p.  46. 

You  dispute  with  Schelling,  and  he  waves  you  away  as  a  pro- 
fane and  intuitionless  laic.  R.  A.  Vaughan  Hours  unth  the  Mys- 
tics vol.  i,  bk.  iii,  ch.  3,  p.  90. 

Frederick  II.  .  .  .  had  his  share  of  brabbling  ivith  intricate 
litigant  neighbors  ;  quarrels  now  and  then,  not  to  be  settled  with- 
out strokes.  Carlyle  Frederick  vol.  i,  bk.  iii,  ch.  3,  p.  158. 

Feeling  that  awful  pause  of  blood  and  breath 
Which  life  endures  when  it  confronts  with  death. 

Hood  Hero  and  Leander  st.  129. 


witii  Prepositions  188 

He  conducted  himself  with  a  certain  stiffness  and  decorum 
which  contrasted  pleasantly  enough  with  the  exceeding  *  bounce  * 
of  his  earlier  career. 

R.  F.  Burton  Lake  Regions  Cent,  Africa  ch.  4,  p.  108. 

In  all  nature  there  is  not  an  object  so  essentially  at  war  with 
the  stiffening  of  frost,  as  the  headlong  and  desperate  life  of  a 
cataract.  De  Quincey  Essays  on  the  Poets  p.  32. 

The  manufactures  of  Flanders  perished  in  the  gi-eat  catastrophe 
of  the  religious  war  of  the  Low  Countries  with  Spain. 

J.  R.  Seeley  Expansion  of  England  course  i,  lect.  v,  p.  85. 

9.  Denoting  separation:  from  ;  as,  to  part  with  a  keepsake ;  to 
dispense  with  a  service  ;  to  differ  with  a  person  ;  to  break  ivith  a 
friend  ;  to  be  done  with  a  matter. 

Fred,  when  he  had  parted  with  his  new  horse  for  at  least 
eighty  pounds,  would  be  at  least  fifty-five  pounds  in  pocket  by  the 
transaction.  George  Eliot  MiddJemarch  ch.  23,  p.  220. 

And  thereupon  told  them  that  the  Lord  has  done  with  them. 
[Cromwell's  words  at  breaking  of  the  Long  Parliament.] 

MORLEY  Oliver  Cromwell  bk.  iv,  ch.  6,  p.  335. 

Verbs  and  Other  Antecedents 

Verbs  denoting  combination  or  union,  or  the  like,  are  fol- 
lowed by  with;  as,  accord,  agree,  ally,  combine,  concur,  confuse, 
conjoin,  connect,  consort,  fuse,  incorporate,  interfere,  intermed- 
dle, intermingle,  intermix,  meddle,  mingle,  mix,  reunite,  unite, 
and  many  others.  Some  antonyms  of  these  verbs,  as  disagree, 
are  followed  by  with,  though  most  take  from,  as  the  preposition 
of  separation;  as,  to  dissent  from,  separate  from,  etc.  Differ 
may  take  either  from  or  with  (see  from).  Agree  may  take 
either  about,  in,  on  (upon) ,  to,  or  with;  as,  to  agree  about  or  on 
a  matter ;  in  opinion ;  to  the  terms ;  ivith  a  person. 

Verbs  denoting  acquaintance,  intercourse,  etc. ,  are  followed 
by  with ;  as,  I  am  acquainted  with  him ;  I  have  met  with  people  of 
that  sort.  Meet  may  be  used  absolutely,  without  a  preposition, 
but  in  that  case  denotes  less  of  association  than  when  followed 
by  with.     Confer,  consult,  and  the  like  are  followed  by  with. 


M 


1§9  Defined  and  Illustrated  witii 

Verbs  denoting  contention,  conflict,  etc.,  are  commonly  fol 
lowed  by  vnth;  as,  argue,  combat,  conflict,  contend,  debate,  dis- 
cuss, dispute,  fight,  quarrel,  strive,  struggle,  war,  wrangle,  etc. 

Adjectives  and  nouns  carrying  similar  meanings  are  likewise 
followed  by  with;  as,  accordant,  content,  contented,  discontented, 
displeased,  dissatisfied,  gratified,  pleased,  satisfied,  united ;  also, 
accord,  agreement,  concord,  gratification,  harmony,  mixture,  sat- 
isfaction, union,  etc.  We  say,  however,  hostile  to,  opposed  to, 
or  speak  of  conflict,  contention,  war,  etc. ,  with,  but  of  hostility  or 
opposition  to  some  person  or  thing. 

Distinctions 
By — with:  The  broad  distinction  between  these  two  words  is 
that  by  denotes  the  agent,  and  with  the  instrument.  The  tree 
was  cut  down  by  a  man  with  an  ax.  By  is,  however,  often  used  of 
things  without  life  that  have  the  effect  of  definitely  accomplishing 
an  action ;  as,  the  town  is  surrounded  by  mountains.  With^  as  de- 
noting association  or  cooperation,  may  be  joined  with  by  denoting  di- 
rect agency  in  the  same  statement ;  as,  it  was  done  by  him  with  my 
assistance ;  by  the  President  with  the  advice  and  consent  of  the  Senate. 

\^By — with — through  :  Whenever  a  conscious  agent  is  men- 
tioned, and  the  instrument  employed  to  accomplish  his  purpose, 
by  must  be  used  to  denote  the  agent,  and  icith,  in  general,  the  in- 
strument ;  as,  "  He  was  slain  by  his  enemy  icith  the  sword." 

Thus,  by  denotes  in  general  the  essential  or  immediate  agent, 
and  icith,  carrying  the  idea  of  companionship,  the  means  or  in- 
strument employed  by  the  agent. 

He  was  struck  by  the  sun.  The  sun  struck  him  with  its  rays. 
The  tree  was  shaken  by  the  wind.  The  wind  shook  the  tree  with 
its  strong  hand. 

The  city  was  destroyed  by  fire.    Here  fire  is  the  essential  agent. 

He  destroyed  the  city  with  fire.  Here  fire  is  the  auxiliary 
means  or  instrument. 

By  attention  and  prompt  action  he  won  his  case,  these  being 
the  essential  agents  of  success. 

He  won  his  case  through  attention  and  prompt  action,  these 
being  the  important  auxiliaries. 

Samuel  Fallows,  100,000  Synonyms  and  Antonyms.] 


within  Prepositions  190 

WITHIN 

Within  is  from  the  Anglo-Saxon  withinnan,  from  ivithy  with, 
plus  innan,  in. 

I.  Of  place  or  space ;  in  the  inner  or  interior  part  of  ;  not  going 
beyond ;  not  exceeding ;  included  in ;  inside  of ;  in ;  as,  within 
the  house  ;  within  the  town  ;  it  is  within  a  mile  of  this  place. 

A  little  way  within  the  shop  door,  lay  heaps  of  old  crackled 
parchment  scrolls  and  discolored  and  dog's-eared  law-papers. 

Dickens  Bleak  House  ch.  5,  p.  83. 

Within  easy  range  and  reach  of  the  great  city  of  London. 

Dickens  Domhey  and  Son  ch.  33,  p.  549. 

And  roused  the  prisoned  brutes  within, 

,  Whittier  Snow-Bound  st.  5. 

Within  these  walls  [St.  Peter's],  the  thermometer  never  varies. 
Hawthorne  Marble  Faun  vol.  ii,  ch.  15,  p.  171. 

The  seven  hills  [of  Rome]  were  first  united  within  the  cincture 
of  a  single  wall.  Chas.  Merivale  Rome  ch.  1,  p.  38. 

During  the  five  winters  the  [New  York  trade]  schools  have 
been  open,  no  rude  or  profane  word  has  been  heard  within  their 
walls.       R.  T.  AuCHMUTY  in  Century  Magazine  Nov.,  1886,  p.  91. 

I  crept  up  within  fifty  yards  of  it  [a  rhinoceros]  unperceived, 

and  sent  a  zinc  bullet  close  to  the  ear,  which  bowled  it  over  dead. 

Stanley  Through  the  Dark  Continent  vol.  i,  ch.  17,  p.  466. 

My  brother  wears  a  martial  plume, 
And  serves  within  a  distant  land. 

T.  B.  Read  Song  of  the  Alpine  Guide  st.  3. 

Doubling  a  creature's  activity,  quadruples  the  area  that  comes 
within  the  range  of  its  excursions. 

Spencer  Biology  vol.  i,  pt.  iii,  ch.  9,  p.  419. 

Then  said  the  brave  Boanerges,  *Let  us  for  a  while  lie  still 
within  our  trenches  and  see  what  these  rebels  will  do.' 

BuNYAN  Works,  Holy  War  p.  386. 

And  now  behold  within  the  haven  rides 

Our  good  ship,  swinging  in  the  changing  tides. 

Morris  Jason  bk.  iii,  st.  13. 


I 


191  Defined  and  Illustrated  witUout 

II.  Of  time :  in  the  limits  of  a  designated  time ;  not  beyond 
or  exceeding;  included  in;  inside  of;  as,  he  will  fail  within  a 
year ;  we  shall  arrive  at  the  house  tvithin  ten  minutes. 

Within  the  first  week  of  my  passion,  I  bought  four  sumptuous 
waistcoats.  Dickens  David  Copperfield  ch.  26,  p.  197. 

III.  Of  general  relations :  in  the  limits,  range,  or  scope  of  ;  in 
the  reach  of;  not  being,  done,  or  going  outside  of;  as,  to  live 
within  one's  means ;  it  is  within  my  power ;  the  matter  is  not 
within  our  jurisdiction. 

This  truth  within  thy  mind  rehearse, 

That  in  a  boundless  universe 

Is  boundless  better,  boundless  worse. 

Tennyson  Two  Voices  st.  9. 

But  from  within  proceeds  a  Nation's  health. 

Wordsworth  Sonnet,  Overweening  Statesmen  1.  3. 

Truth  is  within  ourselves  ;  it  takes  no  rise 
From  outward  things,  whate'er  you  may  believe. 

Browning  Paracelsus  pt.  i,  1.  723. 

Not  only  is  man  within  nature,  but  his  acts  and  works  are 
within  nature,  and  thus  human  industry  itself  is  within  nature. 
Janet  Final  Causes  tr.  by  Affleck,  bk.  i,  ch.  3,  p.  88. 

Educated  intelligence  keeps  radicalism  within  proper  limits, 
and  forces  it  to  conserve  the  highest  purposes,  by  harnessing  it  to 
the  car  of  progress. 

Depew  Orations  and  Speeches,  May  10,  1882  p.  460. 

IVITHOUT 

Without  is  from  the  Anglo-Saxon  withutan,  from  urith,  in  the 
sense  of  against,  plus  Utan,  out. 

I,  Of  place  or  space :  outside  of ;  not  in  or  within ;  external 
to ;  as,  without  the  gate ;  without  the  bounds :  in  this  use  less 
common  than  formerly. 

The  dream's  here  still :  even  when  I  wake,  it  is 
Without  me,  as  within  me. 

Shakespeare  Cymheline  act  iv,  sc.  2, 1.  307. 


witboat  Prepositions  Defined  AND  Illustrated       192 

II,  Of  general  relations : 

1,  Out  of  or  beyond  the  limits  of  (any  society,  association, 
condition,  etc.) ;  exceeding  the  reach  of ;  beyond  :  closely  analo- 
gous but  not  limited  to  the  spatial  meaning ;  as,  without  the  pale 

of  civilization. 

Our  intent 
Was  to  be  gone  from  Athens,  where  we  might  be 
Without  the  peril  of  the  Athenian  law. 
Shakespeare  A  Midsummer-Nighfs  Dream  act  iv,  sc.  1, 1. 153. 

2.  Not  having,  as  the  result  of  loss,  privation,  negation,  or  the 
like;  deprived  of;  destitute  of;  wanting;  lacking;  as,  without 
money ;  without  friends ;  without  recourse. 

A  tender  glow,  exceeding  fair, 
A  dfeam  of  day  without  its  glare. 

Whittier  The  River  Path  st.  6. 

We  have  seen  strong  assertions  without  proof,  declaration 
without  argument,  and  violent  censures  without  dignity  or  mod- 
eration. Junius  Letters  vol.  i,  letter  i,  p.  33. 

An  enterprise  undertaken  without  resolution,  managed  without 
care,  prosecuted  without  vigor,  will  easily  be  dashed  and  prove 
abortive.  Barrow  Sermons  vol.  iii,  ser.  xlii. 

For  no  mind  ever  sailed  steadily,  without  moral  principle  to 
ballast  and  right  it. 

A.  J.  AND  J.  C.  Hare  Guesses  at  Truth  second  series,  p.  508. 

For  Hugo,  man  is  no  longer  an  isolated  spirit  without  antecedent 
or  relation  here  below.    R.  L.  Stevenson  Familiar  Studies  p.  56. 

Plato  returned  to  Athens,  and  began  to  teach.  Like  his  mas- 
ter, he  taught  without  money  and  without  price. 

Smiles  Duty  ch.  1,  p.  26. 

The  Cabinets  and  Chancelleries  of  Europe  were  to  learn  that 
nothing  was  to  be  done  any  more  without  the  authority  of  Eng- 
land. McCarthy  Our  Own  Times  vol.  iv,  ch.  64,  p.  434. 

Let  us  beware  ...  of  a  Christianity  without  Christ. 

J.  Newton  Letters  and  Sermons  vol.  iv,  ser.  iii,  p.  39. 

There  is  in  man  a  Higher  than  Love  of  Happiness  ;  he  can  do 
without  Happiness,  and  instead  thereof  find  Blessedness ! 

Carlyle  Sartor  Resartus  bk.  ii,  ch.  9,  p.  148. 


PART    II 


18  (X9S) 


PART    II 


Conjunctions  Defined  and  Illustrated 

Conjunctions  may  be  regarded  as  the  simplest  of  connectives, 
merely  conjoining  or  joining  together  (Latin  conjunctio,  joining, 
from  conjungo,  join)  words,  phrases,  or  sentences.  When  words 
are  connected  by  a  preposition  those  words  are  in  different  rela- 
tions. Thus,  when  we  say,  * '  John  went  to  James,"  John  is  the  sub- 
ject and  James  the  object  of  the  action,  or,  as  we  commonly  say, 
James  is  "in  the  objective  case."  But  if  we  say,  "John  and 
James  went  together,"  there  is  no  difference  in  the  relations  of 
the  two  nouns.  One  is  as  much  nominative  as  the  other. 
Neither  is  the  object  of  the  action,  but,  as  it  is  the  very  office  of 
the  conjunction  to  indicate,  the  two  nouns  are  coordinate. 

There  are,  indeed,  some  grammarians  (as  Latham)  who  will 

say  that  conjunctions  do  not  connect  words  or  phrases,  but  only 

sentences,  and  that  wherever  two  words  seem  to  be  joined  by 

a  conjunction  the  real  union  is  of  two  sentences  that  might  be 

made  out  of  the  one.    In  some  cases  such  division  may  be  made, 

but  in  others  it  becomes  ridiculous,  as  in  the  sentence  last 

quoted.    If  we    say,  ."John  went  together  and  James  went 

together,"  we  utter  an  absurdity,  and  do  not  give  the  meaning 

of  the  original  sentence.    So  if  we  take  the  sentence,  "  The  king 

and  queen  are  an  amiable  pair,"  and  attempt  to  make  two  sen 

tences  of  it,  we  are  landed  in  the  absurdity  of  saying,  "  The  king 

are  an  amiable  pair  and  the  queen  are  an  amiable  pair" ;  and  we 

do  not  improve  it  by  putting  the  verb  in  the  singular  and  saying, 

"The king  is  an  amiable  pair  and  the  queen  is  an  amiable  pair." 

The  fact  is  that  it  is  exactly  and  expressly  the  two  nouns  which 

a«5) 


Conjunctions  196 


the  conjunction  connects,  "The  king  and  qneen  [united]  con- 
stitute an  amiable  pair." 

The  same  is  true  of  phrases ;  as,  *  to  be  or  not  to  be  ?  that  is 
the  question."  This  could  not  be  resolved  into  "To  be  is  the 
question  07^  not  to  be  is  the  question."  Neither  phrase  is  "the 
question  "  by  itself.  "  The  question  "  is  which  of  the  two  states 
that  are  at  once  paired  and  contrasted  by  or  shall  be  preferred. 

The  English  language  is  much  more  flexible  than  the  gram 
marians,  and  continually  bursts  out  of  their  petty  rules,  as  a 
growing  tree  will  burst  even  an  iron  band  fastened  too  closely 
around  it. 

[A  conjunction  is  a  word  that  conjoins  or  connects.  Con- 
junctions so  often  connect  sentences,  or  what  may  readily  be 
developed  into  sentences,  that  it  has  sometimes  been  held  that 
they  invariably  have  that  office.  Mr.  Harris,  the  author  of 
"Hermes,"  and  Dr.  Latham  are  probably  the  most  eminent  ad- 
vocates of  that  view.  The  latter  says,  "there  are  always  two 
propositions  where  there  is  one  conjunction";  but  the  state- 
ment, I  think,  requires  limitation.  .  .  .  Many  words  are  some- 
times pronouns  or  adverbs,  and  sometimes  conjunctions ;  and  it 
is  not  always  possible  to  tell  in  a  given  instance  which  they  are. 
The  general  test  of  a  conjunction  is  that  it  unites  two  proposi- 
tions or  phrases  without  being  a  part  of  either. 

We  called  (but)  there  was  no  answer. 
The  propositions   are   complete   in  themselves,  and   but  adds 
nothing  to  either,  but  it  shows  a  relation  between  the  two  —  a 
relation  we  may  say  of  disappointment.     The  conjunction  is  not 
necessarily  placed  between  the  related  propositions. 

(Although)  we  called,  there  was  no  answer. 
When  the  subject  or  object  is  two  individuals,  acting  or  acted 
upon  together  and  united  by  and,  the  sentence  cannot  always  be 
decomposed  into  two  propositions  without  completely  recasting  it. 

"  This  dog  and  man  at  first  were  friends." 
If  this  were  developed  into : 

This  dog  at  first  were  friends, 
and 

This  man  at  first  were  friends, 

it  would  be  very  like  nonsense.    The  same  might  be  said  of— 


197  Defined  and  Illustrated  also 

She  mixed  wine  and  oil  together. 

The  mother  and  daughter  embraced  each  other. 
It  is  evident  then  that  and  does  not  always  connect  separate 
propositions.  Ramsey  English  Language  ch.  8,  pp.  491-94.] 

While  words  and  phrases  that  are  connected  by  conjunctions 
are  commonly  coordinate,  yet  in  the  connection  of  sentences  the 
conjunction  may  have  an  office  very  much  like  that  which  the 
preposition  has  in  the  connection  of  nouns  or  pronouns,  showing 
the  dependence  of  one  sentence  upon  another. 

[A  conjunction  differs  from  a  relative  pronoun  or  adverb, 
which  also  connects  propositions,  in  this  that  the  relative  belongs 
to  one  of  the  propositions,  and  the  conjunction  does  not. 

This  is  Mr.  A.  B.  who  is  the  secretary  of  our  society. 
This  is  Mr.  A.  B.  {and)  he  is  the  secretary  of  our  society. 

Ramsey  English  Language  ch.  8,  p.  494.] 

Thus,  in  the  sentence,  **I  should  be  very  sorry  if  this  were 
the  fact,"  the  supposed  possibility  of  the  fact  is  the  condition  of 
the  sorrow.  This  subordinate  or  conditional  thought  is  intro- 
duced by  if,  which  shows  the  sentence  following  to  be  subordi- 
nate or  conditional. 

The  principal  conjunctions  are  the  following :  also,  although, 
and,  as,  because,  both,  but,  either,  except,  for,  however,  if,  lest, 
neither,  nevertheless,  nor,  notwithstanding,  or,  provided,  save, 
seeing,  since,  so,  still,  than,  that,  then,  therefore,  though,  unless, 
what,  when,  whereas,  whereat,  whereby,  wherefor,  wherefore, 
wherein,  whereof,  whereupon,  wherever  (where'er),  whether, 
while,  vnthout,  yet. 

Correlative  conjunctions  are.  although — yet,  as — as,  as — so, 
both — and,  either — or,  if— then,  neither — nor,  now — now,  now — 
then,  so — as,  though — yet,  whereas — therefore,  whether — or. 

AL.ISO 

Also  (Anglo-Saxon  eal  swa,  all  so,  entirely  so)  is  ranked  both 
as  an  adverb  and  a  conjunction.  In  the  conjunctive  use,  it  may 
either  stand  alone  or  in  conjunction  with  and,  but,  etc.,  always 
denoting  that  what  follows  is  of  the  same  sort  as  what  precedes. 


aitiiougii  Conjunctions  19S 

1.  In  like  manner;  likewise;  wholly  so;  quite  so;  as,  we 
must  care  for  the  teachers  and  also  for  the  pupils. 

There  be  three  things  which  go  well,  yea,  four  are  comely  in 
going  •  a  lion,  which  is  strongest  among  beasts  .  .  . ;  a  grey- 
hound; an  he  goat,  also,  Pi^ov.  xxx,  29. 

Likewise  the  second  alsOy  and  the  third,  unto  the  seventh. 

Matt,  xxii,  26. 

And  also,  I  think,  thou  art  not  ignorant 
How  she  opposes  her  against  my  will. 
Shakespeare  Two  Gentlemen  of  Verona  act.  iii,  sc.  2,  1.  25. 

2.  As  something  further  tending  in  the  same  direction,  often 
with  increased  emphasis  or  intensity,  or  as  a  result  or  comple- 
tion in  addition :  besides ;  as  well ;  as,  the  statesman  was  also 
a  soldier. 

And  God  made  two  great  lights ;  the  greater  light  to  rule 
the  day,  and  the  lesser  light  to  rule  the  night ;  he  made  the  stars 
also.  Gen.  i,  16. 

She  took  of  the  fruit  thereof  and  did  eat,  and  gave  also  unto 
her  husband  with  her,  and  he  did  eat.  Gen.  iii,  6. 

He  hoped  also  that  money  should  have  been  given  him  of 
Paul.  Acts  xxiv,  26. 

There  is  always  a  disposition,  also,  to  cavil  at  the  conduct  of 
those  in  command.      Irving  Alhamhra,  Governor  Manco  p.  401. 

AL.THOIJOH 

Although  is  compounded  of  all  and  though,  and  is  thus  a 
strengthened  form  of  though.     See  though. 

[Although — all  though — does  not  differ  in  meaning  from 
though,  one  of  our  most  primitive  conjunctions.  It  admits  the 
foregoing  proposition,  but  prepares  to  deny  the  consequences 
expected  to  follow.  It  is  often  followed  by  still  or  yet  as  a  cor- 
relative. 

*' Although  the  fig-tree  shall  not  blossom,  neither  shall  finiit 
be  in  the  vines,  .  .  .  yet  I  will  rejoice  in  the  Lord." — Hab. 
iii,  17.  Ramsey  English  Language  ch.  8,  p.  495.  J 


199  Defined  and  Illustrated  and 

Introducing  a  concessive  sentence  or  clause  •  admitting  or 
granting  that ;  in  spite  of  the  fact  that ;  even  though ;  notwith- 
standing. 

God  led  them  not  through  the  way  of  the  land  of  the  Philis- 
tines, although  that  was  near.  Ex.  xiii,  17. 

But  Peter  said  unto  him,  Although  all  shall  be  offended,  yet 
will  not  I  Mark  xiv,  29, 

Good  lords,  although  my  will  to  give  is  living, 
The  suit  which  you  demand  is  gone  and  dead 

Shakespeare  King  John  act  iv,  sc.  2.  1.  83 

He  may  not  spare,  although  he  were  his  brother. 

Chaucer  Canterbury  Tales  Prologue,  1  739 

Oratory  is  an  accomplishment  in  which  Europeans  believe 
that  Americans  excel,  and  that  this  is  the  opinion  of  the  Ameri 
cans  themselves,  although  they  are  too  modest  to  express  it, 
may  be  gathered  from  the  surprise  they  betray  when  they  find 
an  Englishman  fluent  before  an  audience. 

Bryce  Am.  Commonwealth  vol.  ii,  ch.  3,  p.  651. 

AIVD 

And  is  a  pure  Anglo-Saxon  word  preserved  without  change 
in  modem  English.  And  may  be  regarded  as  the  simplest  of 
all  connectives,  adding  one  thing  to  another,  or  placing  one 
thing  beside  another,  without  specification  of  the  kind  of  con- 
nection—a mere  plus  sign.  In  usage  it  has  certain  derived 
meanings  which  are  due  to  the  qualities  of  the  things  thus 
brought  together,  rather  than  to  anything  inherent  in  the  mean- 
ing of  the  conjunction. 

[And  joins  only  things  that  are  grammatically  alike  and 
equivalent.  It  unites  nouns,  including  their  substitutes,  pro- 
nouns, or  adjectives,  verbs,  adverbs,  or  prepositions,  but  it  does 
not  unite  members  of  these  different  classes.  Moreover  it  is  the 
only  conjunction  that  unites  parts  which  cannot  be  construed  as 
separate  propositions.     Ramsey  English  Language  ch.  8,  p.  495.] 

I.  Copulative  or  additive  : 


and  Conjunctions  200 

1.  Denoting  simple  addition  :  together  with  ;  joined  with  ; 
added  to ;  furthermore ;  also  :  the  typical  copulative  conjunc- 
tion ,  as,  William  and  Henry ;  army  and  navy ;  one  hundred  and 
twenty. 

Dim  grows  the  sky,  and  dusk  the  air. 

R.  H.  Stoddard  Night  Before  the  Bridal  st.  5. 

Little  breezes  dusk  and  shiver    Thro'  the  wave  that  runs  forever. 

Tennyson  Lady  of  Shalott  pt.  i,  st.  2. 

We  are  accustomed  to  think  of  a  dragon  as  a  winged  and 
clawed  creature ;  but  the  real  Greek  dragon  .  .  was  simply  a 
serpent  Ruskin  Deucalion  vol.  ii,  ch.  1,  p.  10. 

Where  loop  the  clustered  vines ; 

And  the  close -clinging  dulcamara  twines. 

Holmes  Musa  st.  6. 

He  does  nothing  but  sit  at  the  table  and  drum  with  his 
fingers  G.  W.  Curtis  Trumps  ch.  62,  p.  360. 

Mirth  is  short  and  transient,  cheerfulness  fixed  and  perma 
nent.  Addison  Spectator,  May  17,  1712. 

Nobles  by  the  right  of  an  earlier  creation,  and  priests  by  the 
imposition  of  a  mightier  hand.     Macaulay  Essays,  Milton  p.  16. 

In  choice  and  volition  we  have  the  two  factors  of  the  will, 
the  constituents  of  man  as  a  free  agent. 

Hopkins  Script.  Idea  of  Man  lect.  iii,  p.  65 

[Note. — In  the  last  quotation  above,  and  might  be  rendered 
combined  ivith.  It  denotes  the  close  union  of  the  connected 
nouns,  so  that  both  are  governed  by  the  same  preposition  and 
combine  in  a  single  result. 

Closely  allied  to  this  is  the  idiomatic  expression  "  and  all/' 
which  is  very  emphatic.  One  or  more  items  are  mentioned, 
which  are  strictly  part  of  the  "all."  Then  the  attempt  at  enu- 
meration is  dropped,  and  the  speaker  says  "and  [in  fact]  all" — 
i.  e. ,  not  only  what  has  been  mentioned,  but  all  of  which  it  is  a 

part. 

The  total  grist  unsifted,  husks  and  all. 

CowPER  Task  bk.  vi,  1.  108.] 


201  Defined  and  Illustrated  and 

2,   Continuing   the   narrative    or  following   the   course   of 
thought :  in  addition ;  also ;  as,  they  turned  and  ran  away 

To  such  a  fame  let  mere  town- wits  aspire, 
And  their  gay  nonsense  their  own  cits  admire. 
Dryden  Prologue  III,  To  the  University  of  Oxford  1.  37. 

But  when  the  captains  saw  how  it  was,  they  made  a  fair  re- 
treat and  entrenched  themselves  in  their  winter  quarters. 

BuNYAN  The  Holy  War  ch.  5,  p.  115. 

He  managed  to  continue  work  till  nine  o'clock,  and  then 
marched  dumb  and  dour  to  his  chamber. 

Emily  Bronte  Wuthering  Heights  ch.  7,  p.  49. 

He  started  back,  gazed,  nor  could  aught  but  gaze, 
And  cold  dread  stiffened  up  his  hair. 

Landor  Gehir  bk.  ii,  L  237. 

Cock-fighters  trim  the  hackles  and  cut  off  the  combs  and  gills 
of  their  cocks ;  and  the  birds  are  then  said  to  be  dubbed. 

Darwin  Descent  of  Man  pt.  ii,  ch.  13,  p.  403. 

Christianity  soon  eclipsed  or  destroyed  all  other  sects,  and 

became  for  many  centuries  the  supreme  ruler  of  the  moral  world. 

Lecky  Hist.  Eur.  Morals  vol.  i,  ch.  2,  p.  356. 

Honesty  goes  to  bed  early,  and  industry  rises  betimes. 

Chas.  Reade  Cloister  and  Hearth  ch.  42,  p.  193. 

'Tis  distance  lends  enchantment  to  the  view, 
And  robes  the  mountain  in  its  azure  hue. 

Campbell  Pleasures  of  Hope  pt.  i,  st.  1. 

Suddenly  drops  the  gull  and  breaks  the  glassy  tide. 

Lowell  Indian  Summer  Reverie  st.  24. 

The  eve  was  cradling  earth  to  sleep, 

And  night  upon  the  mountains  hung. 

Goethe  Welcome  and  Departure  tr.  by  Martin  and  Aytoun,  1.  1. 

Thomas  Jefferson  .  .  .  caught  and  crystallized  the  spirit  of 
free  institutions. 

Depew  Orations  and  Speeches,  April  SO,  1889  p.  6. 

'Twas  daybreak,  and  the  fingers  of  the  dawn 
Drew  the  night's  curtain. 

N.  P.  Willis  Davids  Grief  st.  1. 


and  Conjunctions  202 

[Note. — Where  two  or  more  items  are  connected  in  an  enu- 
meration, and  is  commonly  omitted  except  before  the  last  of  the 
series ;  as,  he  was  brave,  valiant,  and  noble.  (The  best  present 
usage  retains  the  comma  before  the  and  in  snch  an  enumeration. ) 

This  ordinary  method  is,  however,  subject  to  several  varia- 
tions : 

(a)  The  conjunction  may  be  repeated  between  every  two 
items  of  an  enumeration ;  as,  fire  and  hail  and  candle-light. 
This  method,  which  would  be  tiresome  if  constantly  employed, 
is  very  effective  in  occasional  use,  seeming  at  once  to  emphasize 
the  separate  items  and  to  protract  the  enumeration,  thus  ma- 
king it  more  impressive. 

East  and  west  and  south  and  north 

The  messengers  ride  fast. 
And  tower  and  town  and  cottage 
Have  heard  the  trumpet's  blast. 

Macaulay  Horatius  st.  2. 
The  chains,  and  the  bracelets,  and  the  mufflers.     Isa.  iii,  19. 

And  boy  and  dog,  and  hostler  and  Boots,  all  slunk  back 
again  to  their  holes.  Irving  Bracebridge,  Stout  Gent.  p.  78. 

(b)  The  items  of  the  series  may  be  joined  in  pairs,  the  two  of 

each  pair  being  connected  by  and;  as,  king  and  subject,  peer 

and  peasant,  rich  and  poor,  man  and  woman  are  alike  interested 

in  the  sacred  observance  of  law. 

A  fairy  realm ;  where  slope  and  stream. 
Champaign  and  upland,  town  and  grange,  .  .  . 
Forever  blend  and  interchange. 

E.  C.  Stedman  Bohemia  st.  6. 

I  might  present  to  you  the  long  catalogue  of  the  noble  and 
the  good,  the  wise  and  the  brave. 

A.  McKenzie  Cambridge  Sermons  ser.  xv,  p.  290. 

(c)  The  conjunction  may  be  omitted  altogether,  a  method 

forcible  by  its  very  abruptness  if  sparingly  used. 

Two  horses  have  emerged  from  the  ruck,  and  are  sweeping, 
rushing,  storming  towards  us,  almost  side  by  side. 

Holmes  Our  Hundred  Days  ch.  1,  p.  54. 


203  Defined  and  Illustrated  and 

Love  rules  the  court,  the  camp,  the  grove. 

Scott  The  Lay  of  the  Last  Minstrel  can.  3,  st.  2, 1.  6.] 

3.  Denoting  emphasis  by  reduplication : 

(a)  Indicating  great  but  indefinite  number,  time,  extent,  etc., 
by  repetition;  as,  years  and  years;  thousands  and  thousands; 
we  walked  miles  and  miles;  forever  and  ever;  greater  and 
greater ;  more  and  more ;  less  and  less. 

Higher  still  and  higher. 
From  the  earth  thou  springest. 

Shelley  To  a  Skylark  st.  2. 

The  emphasis  is  sometimes  increased  by  adding  something 
greater  after  the  conjunction  in  such  use;  as,  it  lasted  for 
months  and  years ;  they  came  by  hundreds  and  thousands. 

(h)  Indicating  emphasis  by  mere  repetition  of  any  word, 
thus  causing  the  mind  to  dwell  upon  the  thought:  one  of  the 
simplest  and  most  primitive  forms  of  emphatic  statement ;  as, 
they  talked  and  talked;  he  raved  and  raved  and  raved;  soldiers 
and  soldiers  and  soldiers  came  marching  in. 

If  thou  would'st  view  fair  Melrose  aright. 
Go  visit  it  by  the  pale  moonlight ; 
****** 

When  buttress  and  buttress,  alternately, 
Seem  framed  of  ebon  and  ivory. 
Scott  The  Lay  of  the  Last  Minstrel  can.  2,  st.  1, 1.  1. 

[Note. — In  the  case  of  adjectives  other  than  comparatives, 
such  reduplicative  emphasis  is  usually  given  without  the' and; 
as,  that  tall,  tall  spire.] 

II,  Intensive. 

1,  Denoting  advance  of  thought:  also,  what  is  more  impor- 
tant ;  moreover  an  intensive  use ;  as,  he  did  the  work  and  did 
it  well ;  I  say  it  and  [what  is  more]  I  mean  it. 

In  this  tract  the  French  still  had  the  ascendancy ;  and  it  was 
important  to  dislodge  them. 

Macaulay's  Essays,  Malcolm's  Clive  p.  332. 


and  CONJUNCTiONS  204 

Strictly  speaking,  all  quiescent  electricity  is  static,  and  all 
electricity  in  motion,  from  whatever  source,  is  dynamic. 

B.  SiLLiMAN,  Jr.  Physics  ^  809,  p.  532. 

The  mark  is  there,  and  the  wound  is  cicatrized  only — no 
time,  tears,  caresses,  or  repentance  can  obliterate  that  scar. 

Thackeray  Henry  Esmond  bk.  ii,  ch.  i,  p.  144. 

Neither  is  a  dictionary  a  bad  book  to  read.  There  is  no  cant 
in  it,  no  excess  of  explanation,  and  it  is  full  of  suggestion. 

Emerson  Society  and  Solitude ,  Books  p.  169. 

In  the  eye  of  the  law,  all  Roman  citizens  were  equal,  and  all 
subjects  of  the  empire  were  citizens  of  Rome. 

Gibbon  Rome  vol.  iv,  ch.  44,  p.  340. 

The  camp  and  not  the  soil  is  the  native  country  of  the 
genuine  Tartar.  Gibbon  Rome  vol.  iii,  ch.  26,  p.  7. 

The  ruin'd  spendthrift,  now  no  longer  proud, 
Claim'd  kindred  there,  and  had  his  claims  allowed. 

Goldsmith  Deserted  Village  1. 154. 

Speak  truth  and  the  whole  truth.    Shelley  Cenci  act  v,  sc.  2. 

2.  In  union  of  two  adjectives,  specializing  and  emphasizing 
by  the  latter  some  quality  included  in  the  former;  as,  these 
peaches  are  good  and  ripe ;  he  is  nice  and  kind. 

This  usage  is  now  colloquial  and  considered  inelegant.  It 
has  the  taint  of  tautology  and  consequent  feebleness.  This 
criticism  does  not  apply  to  the  union  of  adjectives  where  there 
is  a  real  advance  of  thought;  as,  wise  and  good;  cheap  and 
nasty ;  strong  and  swift. 

III.  Adversative  or  disjunctive : 

Denoting  the  addition  of  that  which  is  different,  contrasted 
or  opposed:  a  use  founded  on  the  fact  that  nothing  brings  out  a 
contrast  so  clearly  as  the  simple  placing  of  the  contrasted 
objects  side  by  side: 

(a)  On  the  other  hand;  yet  in  addition;  yet;  but;  as,  so  rich 
and  so  stingy  I 

[Note. — And  in  such  use  is  nearly  equal  to  but.  See  Dis- 
tinctions.] 


205  Defined  and  Illustrated  and 

It  is  one  thing  to  entertain,  and  another  to  be  entertaining. 
C.  D.  Warner  Little  Journey  in  the  World  ch.  13,  p.  227. 

I  have  brought  you  here  to  reason,  .  .  .  and  wrangling  is 
caddish.  E.  Lynn  Linton  Patricia  Kemhall  ch.  20,  p.  214. 

In  schools  and  colleges,  in  fleet  and  army,  discipline  means 
success,  and  anarchy  means  ruin. 

Froude  Short  Studies,  Kerry  in  second  series,  p.  381. 

Lord  Brougham's  wise  dictum  .  .  .  that  it  is  well  to  read 
everything  of  something  and  something  of  everything. 

Lubbock  Pleasures  of  Life  pt.  i,  ch.  3,  p.  63. 

God  made  the  country  and  man  made  the  town. 

CowPER  The  Task  bk.  i,  1.  749. 

(5)  Discriminating  between  things  that  are  united  under  the 
same  class  or  name,  but  are  different  in  character;  as,  there 
are  apples  and  apples,  that  is,  apples  [of  one  kind]  and  apples 
[of  a  very  different  kind] . 

(c)  Noting  the  joining  of  extremes  in  thought,  with  conse- 
quent inclusion  of  all  that  may  be  between,  or  noting  the 
matching  of  opposite  or  different  directions,  qualities,  etc. ;  as, 
alike  to  rich  and  poor;  to  travel  far  and  wide;  he  paced  to  and 
fro;  he  gazed  up  and  down. 

And  I  would  be  the  necklace, 
And  all  day  long  to  fall  and  rise 

Upon  her  balmy  bosom. 
With  her  laughter  or  her  sighs. 

Tennyson  The  Miller's  Daughter  1.  182. 

IV.  Purposive  or  resultant  : 

1.  Adding  a  fact  or  statement  which  is  viewed  as  the  result 
of  what  has  gone  before  :  consequently ;  accordingly ;  hence ; 
as,  he  found  sleep  impossible,  and  rose  weary  and  grumbling. 

You  bear  a  gentle  mind,  and  heavenly  blessings 
Follow  such  creatures. 

Shakespeare  K.  Henry  VIIL  act  ii,  sc.  3. 

Were  the  centrifugal  tendency  to  cease,  the  centripetal  force 
would  be  uncontrolled,  and  the  body  would  fall  upon  the  at- 
tracting mass.     J.  N.  Lockyer  Elements  of  Astron.  ch.  16,  p.  281. 


and  Conjunctions  206 

Enlist  the  interests  of  stern  morality  and  religious  enthn- 
siasm  in  the  cause  of  political  liberty,  as  in  the  time  of  the  old 
Puritans,  and  it  will  be  irresistible. 

Coleridge  Table  Talk  May  8,  1830. 

I  was  brought  up  in  a  New  England  village,  a7id  I  knew  .  .  . 
where  all  those  things  were  that  boys  enterprise  after. 

Beecher  in  Abbott's  Henry  Ward  Beecher  p.  15. 

We  only  know  that  God  is  just,    And  every  wrong  shall  die. 

Whittier  At  Port  Royal  st.  15 

Remember  of  what  blood  thou  art,    And  strike  the  caitiff  down ! 

Aytoun  Execution  of  Montrose  st.  3. 

My  dragoman  had  me  completely  in  his  power,  and  I  resolved 
to  become  independent  of  all  interpreters  as  soon  as  possible. 

Baker  Albert  Nyanza  ch.  1,  p.  3. 

The  ibis  destroyed  snakes ;  and  Cuvier  found  the  skin  of  one 

partly  digested  in  the  intestines  of  one  of  those  mummied  birds. 

Rawlinson  Herodotus  vol.  ii,  bk.  ii,  p.  107,  note  5. 

'Twas  summer,  and  the  meadow  lands 
Were  brown  and  baked  and  dry. 

Alice  Cary  Fable  of  Cloud-land  st.  1. 

2.  In  the  union  of  two  verbs,  especially  after  go,  come,  send, 
and  try :  as  the  result  or  fulfilment  (of  an  action  implied  in  the 
preceding  verb) ;  as,  try  and  find  it;  go  and  get  it. 

May's  in  all  the  Italian  books  ; 
She  has  old  and  modern  nooks,  .  .  . 
And  will  rise  and  dress  your  rooms 
*   With  a  drapery  thick  with  blooms. 

Hunt  May  and  the  Poets  1.  9. 

[Note. — Many  grammarians  have  been  in  error  in  defining 
and  in  this  usage  as  equivalent  to  to,  and  hence  condemning  it 
as  superfluous  or  incorrect.  The  usage  is  sustained  by  the  very 
highest  authority,  and,  when  we  come  to  balance  the  expres- 
sions, is  sustained  also  by  the  logic  of  linguistic  thought.  If  we 
change  "try  and  find  it"  into  "try  to  find  it,"  there  is  an  instant 
loss  of  force.  Why?  Because  " try  to  find  it"  refers  only  to  a 
purpose  which  is  antecedent  to  the  trying,  and  which  may 


207  Defined  and  Illustrated  and 

never  be  fulfilled,  while  "try  and  find  it"  contemplates  the 

finding  as  the  sure  result  of  the  trying,  which  may  therefore  be 

added  to  it  as  an  accomplished  fact.    Instead  of  being  equivalent 

to  an  infinite,  the  and  with  its  following  verb  is  more  nearly 

equal  to  a  future  tense,  "try  and  [you  will]  find  it."    Hence 

this  idiom  has  a  conclusiveness  to  be  attained  by  no  other  form 

of  expression. 

They  said  unto  him.  Rabbi,  .  .  .  where  dwellest  thou  ?    He 

saith  unto  them,  Come  and  see.  John  i,  38. 

He  saith  unto  them,  How  many  loaves  have  ye  ?  go  and  see. 

Mark  vi,  38. 

Go  and  shew  John  again  those  things  which  ye  do  hear  and 
see.  Matt,  xi,  4. 

[Note. — It  may  be  seen  that  in  rapid,  emphatic  utterance, 
the  and  of  such  expressions  is  often  omitted;  as,  go  bring  me 
my  hat. 

Let  me  not  stay  a  jot  for  dinner ;  go  get  it  ready. 

Shakespeare  King  Lear  act  i,  sc.  4,  1.  82. 

Come,  gentle  dreams,  the  hour  of  sleep  beguile ! 

Longfellow  The  Child  Asleep  st.  5.] 

V,  Certain  archaic  uses  need  but  be  mentioned;  as,  (a)  Also; 
even  :  often  added  to  but,  but  and  being  equivalent  to  but  also, 
(b)  If  :  commonly  printed  an  or  an',  as  frequently  found  in 
Shakespeare  and  others  of  the  older  writers,  and  often  joined 
with  if,  which  has  now  completely  taken  its  place. 

No  more  of  that,  Hal,  an  thou  lovest  me. 

Shakespeare  1 K.  Henry  IV.  act  ii,  sc.  4, 1.  312. 
God  mark  thee  to  his  grace ! 
Thou  wast  the  prettiest  babe  that  e'er  I  nursed : 
An  I  might  live  to  see  thee  married  once, 
I  have  my  wish. 

Shakespeare  Romeo  and  Juliet  act  i,  sc.  3,  1.  50. 

And  may  stand  at  the  beginning  of  a  sentence,  adding  what 
is  to  come  to  something  previously  said,  answering  the  words 
of  some  other  speaker,  or  even  some  unspoken  thought  or  infer- 


as 


Conjunctions  208 


ence  supposed  to  be  in  his  words  or  acts,  joining  what  the 
speaker  has  now  to  say  to  some  silent  thought  or  reasoning  of 
his  own  mind,  etc. :  often  passing  to  sharp  adversative  use,  ex 
pressing  indignant  surprise,  reproach,  etc. ;  as,  and  do  you  mean 
to  tell  me  you  went  there  ?  and  you  come  to  tell  me  this ;  and 
[in  spite  of  all]  you  believe  that  ? 

And  with  one  voice  the  thirty 

Have  their  glad  answer  given : 
*Gk)  forth,  go  forth,  Lars  Porsena; 
Go  forth,  beloved  of  Heaven ! ' 

Macaulay  Horatius  st.  5. 

And  still  in  a  voice  of  dolorous  pitch — 
Would  that  its  tone  could  reach  the  rich ! — 
She  sang  this  '  Song  of  the  Shirt/ 

Hood  Song  of  the  Shirt  st.  11. 

And  in  any  case,  it  is  useless  to  dogmatize  about  things  which 
God  has  not  revealed.  Farrar  Eternal  Hope  p.  94. 

Distinctions 

And  —  but:  And  and  hut  are  for  the  most  part  sharply 
opposed,  and  being  the  typical  copulative  or  conjoining,  and  but 
the  typical  disjunctive  or  disjoining  particle.  And  expresses 
proximity,  likeness,  or  union ;  but  expresses  contrast,  unlikeness, 
or  opposition.  Yet,  in  certain  uses,  these  two  conjunctions  al- 
most coincide.  And,  as  in  the  examples  under  HI. ,  1  (a)  is  often 
almost  or  quite  equivalent  to  but,  having  only  this  difference 
that  the  contrast  with  and  is  left  to  inference,  while  with  but  it 
is  expressly  stated.  The  presentation  by  and  is  with  a  lighter 
touch,  and  hence  sometimes  more  impressive,  as  assuming  that 
the  contrast  is  self-evident,  and  need  not  be  expressly  stated  by 
but,  but  only  pointed  to  by  and. 

And — or:  See  or. 

AS 
As  is  derived  from  the  Anglo-Saxon  eal  swd,  all  so,  entirely 
so :  the  particle  of  comparison,  likeness,  or  illustration. 


209  Defined  and  Illustrated  as 

I,  Denoting  equality,  comparison,  equivalence,  or  proportion: 

1,  As  to  extent  or  character:  to  the  extent  of;  to  the  degree 
in  which ;  in  proportion  to  which ;  no  less  than ;  like :  often  with 
one  of  the  correlatives  same,  such,  so,  as;  as,  this  is  the  same  as 
that ;  such  a  one  as  he  can  not  fail. 

Cheerily,  then,  my  little  man, 
Live  and  laugh,  as  boyhood  can! 

Whittier  Barefoot  Boy  st.  5. 

ne  bade  the  twelve  in  all  things  be  as  brothers, 
And  die  to  self,  to  live  and  work  for  others. 

J.  B.  O'Reilly  Macarius  the  Monk  st.  1. 

Never  .  .  .  can  the  sight  of  the  gigantic  Coliseum  full  and 
running  over  with  the  lustiest  life,  have  moved  one  heart,  as  it 
must  move  all  who  look  upon  it  now,  a  ruin. 

Dickens  Pictures  from  Italy,  Rome  p.  121. 

Her  eyes  as  stars  of  twilight  fair, 
Like  twilight's,  too,  her  dusky  hair ; 
But  all  things  else  about  her  drawn 
From  May -time  and  the  cheerful  dawn. 
Wordsworth  She  Was  a  Phantom  of  Delight  st.  1. 

Never  was  dominion  wielded  by  such  unfit  hands  as  those  of 
the  Spartans.  Thomas  Arnold  Rome  vol.  i,  ch.  22,  p.  493. 

In  the  early  part  of  life  we  collect  the  materials ;  as  we  grow 
older  we  learn  to  use  them. 

Wayland  Intellectual  Philosophy  ch.  5,  p.  235. 

As  the  Greeks  and  Romans  became  acquainted  with  other 
nations  they  imported  their  habits  of  worship. 

BuLFiNCH  Age  of  Fable  int.,  ch.  1,  p.  6. 

We  all  know  the  wag's  definition  of  a  philanthropist  —  a  man 
whose  charity  increases  directly  as  the  square  of  the  distance. 
George  Eliot  Middlemarch  vol.  i,  ch.  38,  p.  420. 

2.  In  time,  denoting  simultaneousness :  at  or  during  the  time 
when;  in  or  during  the  act  of;  while;  when;  as,  the  company 
rose  as  he  entered ;  the  king  bowed  right  and  left  as  he  rode  on. 

As  thus  used  has  often  a  suggestion  of  occasion  or  cause;  as, 
as  he  looked  up  I  saw  his  meaning. 


14 


^     OF  THE  ^\ 

WNIVERSITY  I 


as  Conjunctions  210 

As  daylight   failed,    Slow,    overhead,    the    dusky  night  birds 
sailed.  Whittier  Pennsylvania  Pilgrim  st.  9. 

Then  shrilled  his  fierce  cry,  as  the  riders  drew  nigh. 

Trowbridge  The  Jaguar  Hunt  st.  9, 

His  heart  bounded  as  he  sometimes  could  distinctly  hear  the 
trip  of  a  light  female  step  glide  to  or  from  the  door  of  the  hut. 

Scott  Waverley  vol.  ii,  ch.  37,  p  62. 

I  was  extremely  pleased,  as  we  rode  along,  to  observe  the 
general  benevolence  of  all  the  neighbourhood  toward  my  friend. 

Addison  Spectator  July  13,  1711 

As  I  rounded  an  elbow  in  the  stream,  a  black  eagle  sprang 
from  the  top  of  a  dead  tree.      Burroughs  Pepacton  ch  1,  p.  16. 

I,  looking  then,  beheld  the  ancient  Three,  ... 
Still  crooning,  as  they  weave  their  endless  brede. 

Lowell  Washers  of  the  Shroud  st.  4. 

Fast  as  the  fatal  symbol  flies,     In  arms  the  huts  and  hamlets 
rise.  Scott  Lady  of  the  Lake  can.  3,  st.  14. 

Just  as  the  sun's  slow  orb  forsook  the  fulgent  west. 

Tasso  Jerusalem  Delivered  tr.  by  Wiffen,  can.  4,  st.  55. 

The  pilot  grumbled  as  he  cast  his  groggy  eyes  aloft. 

W.  Clark  Russell  John  Holdsworth  ch.  3,  p.  7. 

A  most  tremendous  '  buck '  he  was,  as  he  sat  there,  serene, 
in  state,  driving  his  greys.    Thackeray  Vanity  Fair  ch.  6,  p.  31. 

II.  Denoting  illustration  or  representation : 

1.  Introducing  an  illustration,  example,  or  citation-  for  ex- 
ample ;  for  instance ;  as,  an  animal  that  matures  slowly,  as  the 
elephant,  lives  long ;  a  poem  may  be  perfect  in  meter  without 
rime,  as  Longfellow's  Evangeline. 

Bran-new.  .  .  .  The  brand  is  the  fire,  and  brand-new,  equiv- 
alent to  fire-new  (Shak.),  is  that  which  is  fresh  and  bright,  as 
being  newly  come  from  the  forge  and  fire.       Skeat  Etym.  Diet. 

2.  Denoting  representation :  in  the  character  of ;  presenting 
the  appearance  of;  after  the  manner  of;  under  the  name  of;  as, 
I  look  upon  him  as  our  foremost  author;  he  was  chosen  as 
moderator;  Booth  appeared  as  Hamlet. 


211  Defined  and  Illustrated  as 

Speech  has  been  bitterly  defined  as  the  art  of  hiding  thought. 
Robertson  Sermons  first  series,  ser.  iii,  p.  54. 

In  the  eyes  of  the  West  and  of  the  Church  in  the  West 
Charlemagne  and  his  successors,  who  were  crowned  by  the  Pope, 
were  regarded  as  the  true  emperors  of  the  Christian  world,  the 
true  successors  of  Augustus  and  Antoninus,  as  the  true  temporal 
heads  of  the  Holy  Roman  Empire. 

Baring-Gould  Story  of  Germany  ch.  10,  p.  65. 

If  we  mean  to  keep  the  blacks  as  British  subjects,  we  are 
bound  to  govern  them,  and  to  govern  them  well. 

Froude  Eng.  in  the  West  Indies  ch.  8,  p.  91. 

Children  are  apt  to  take  all  stories  of  fairy,  giant,  and  so  on 
as  gospel.  Sully  Psychol  ch.  11,  p.  188. 

With  silence  only  as  their  benediction,    God's  angels  come. 

Whittier  To  My  Friend  st.  6. 
I  present  myself  as  the  advocate  of  my  enslaved  countrymen, 
at  a  time  when  their  claims  cannot  be  shuffled  out  of  sight. 

W.  L.  Garrison  Writings  and  Speeches,  Fourth  of  July  Ora- 
tion p.  188. 

It  would  therefore  pay  to  melt  it  up  because  it  was  worth 
more  as  bullion  than  as  coin. 

A.  L.  Perry  Elements  of  Polit.  Econ.  ch.  10,  p.  319. 
Peace  is  now  recognized  among  Christian  states  as  their 
normal  condition,  war  as  the  exceptional  and  sad  interruption. 
Storrs  Divine  Origin  Christianity  led.  vi,  p.  203. 

Those  books,  and  those  only,  were  regarded  by  the  primitive 
Christians  as  of  canonical  authority,  which  were  written  by  apos- 
tles, or  by  the  companions  of  the  apostles  under  apostolic  super- 
intendence. C.  E.  Stowe  Books  of  Bible  p.  143. 

The  canter  is  usually  regarded  as  a  slow  gallop,  probably 
from  the  facility  with  which  a  change  from  one  gait  to  the  other 
can  be  effected;  an  important  difference  will,  however,  be  ob- 
served. Eadweard  Muybridge  On  the  Science  of  Animal  Loco- 
motion p.  10. 

Ill,  Denoting  cause  or  reason:  for  the  reason  that;  it  being 
the  case  that;  considering  that;  because;  since;  as,  as  we  had 
a  fair  wind,  we  sailed  straight  across  the  open  sea ;  as  he  is  poor, 
the  debt  may  be  remitted ;  as  you  are  here,  we  will  discuss  it  now. 


because  CONJUNCTIONS  212 

It  was  easy  enough  to  buy,  as  nothing  was  ever  given  in  pay 
ment  but  a  promissory  note. 

NicoLAY  AND  Hay  Abraham  Lincoln  vol.  i,  ch.  6,  p.  110. 

It  was  an  uncomfortable  time  for  us,  as  we  momentarily 
expected  it  [ice]  to  *  nip  *  her  sides. 

Kane  U.  S.  Grinnell  Expedition  ch.  IG,  p.  123. 

As  the  launch  drew  little  water,  we  had  no  occasion  to  follow 
the  circuitous  channel. 

Froude  Eng,  in  the  West  Indies  ch.  14,  p.  222, 

IV,  Denoting  concession :  however ;  though ;  as,  bad  as  it  is, 
it  might  be  worse ;  scarce  as  money  is,  I  do  not  despair. 

Buried  as  she  seemed  in  foreign  negotiations,  .  .  .  Eli*^abeth 
was  above  all  an  English  sovereign. 

Green  Short  Hist  Eng.  People  ch.  7,  §  5,  p.  396. 

Distinctions 
As — like:  As  denotes  closer  equivalence,  a  nearer  approach 
to  identity  than  like.     "They  lived  as  brothers"  means  some- 
what more  than  "They  lived  like  brothers." 

BECAIJSE 

Because  is  from  the  prefix  be-  (Anglo-Saxon  be-),  equal  to  by, 
plus  the  noun  cause,  and  is  literally  by  cause.  The  word  is  five 
centuries  old,  and  in  the  older  writings  is  often  spelled  bycause ; 
it  was  also  often  anciently  preceded  by  for,  as  a  matter  of  em- 
phatic reduplication ;  as,  and  for  because  the  world  is  populous 
(Shakespeare  Richard  II.  act  v,  sc.  4,  1.  3). 

Having  as  a  cause  that;  for  the  reason  that;  as;  since;  as, 
this  box  is  light  because  it  is  empty. 

My  strength  is  as  the  strength  of  ten.    Because  my  heart  is  pure. 

Tennyson  Sir  Galahad  st.  1. 

But  they  [the  English]  have  been  great  and  happy  because 
their  history  has  been  the  history  of  a  succession  of  timely  re- 
forms. Macaulay  Speeches,  Jidy  5,  1831  in  vol.  i,  p.  30. 


213  Defined  and  Illustrated  because 

What's  female  beauty,  but  an  air  divine, 
Through  which  the  mind's  all -gentle  graces  shine  ? 
They,  like  the  Sun,  irradiate  all  between ; 
The  body  charms,  because  the  soul  is  seen. 

Young  Love  of  Fame  satire  vi,  1.  151. 

They  [the  stars  and  the  sun]  shine  or  give  out  light,  because 
they  are  white  hot.    J.  N.  Lockyer  Elements  ofAstron.  int. ,  p.  12. 

They  pile  up  reluctant  quarto  upon  solid  folio,  as  if  their  la- 
bours, because  they  are  gigantic,  could  contend  with  truth  and 
heaven.  Junius  Letters  vol.  i,  letter  xx,  p.  129. 

It  [memory]  fails  first  in  names,  because  they  are  arbitrary 
and  have  not  numerous  correlations  to  call  them  up. 

McCosH  Psychology,  Cognitive  Powers  bk.  ii,  p.  159. 

A  lie  is  contemptible,  chiefly  because  it  is  cowardly. 

Christian  Reid  Question  of  Honor  bk.  iii,  ch.  6,  p.  284. 

Never  settle  upon  anything  as  true,  because  it  is  safer  to  hold 
it  than  not.    Bushnell  Sermons  on  Living  Subjects  ser.  ix,  p.  180. 

We  may  not  be  concerned  in  buttressing  any  theology  be- 
cause it  is  old.  Drummond  Natural  Law,  Biogenesis  p.  93. 

[Note. — Because  is  often  joined  with  of,  forming  the  prepo- 
sitional phrase  because  of,  which  may  be  used  causatively  with 
nouns,  as  the  conjunction  is  with  clauses  or  sentences. 

And  if  Christ  be  in  you,  the  body  is  dead  because  of  sin ;  but 
the  Spirit  is  life  because  of  righteousness.  Rom.  viii,  10. 

It  is  not  because  of  its  antiquity,  or  of  the  character  of  the 
times  in  which  it  was  first  believed,  that  the  doctrine  of  special 
creations  can  be  shown  to  be  irrational  or  improbable. 

G.  T.  Curtis  Creation  or  Evolution  ch.  4,  p.  134. 

The  beautiful  seems  right 
By  force  of  beauty,  and  the  feeble  wrong 
B€ca/me  qf  weakness. 

Bv  B»  BEOw:^rING  Auerora  Leigh  bk.  ii  L  tH. 

All  things  ai'e  beautiful ,       . 
Because  of  something  lovelier  than  themselves, 
Which  breathes  within  them,  and  will  never  die. 

Lucy  Larcom  Prelude  to  Poems  st.  1.] 


both  Conjunctions  214 

Distinctions 
As — because  — for — since :  See  smcE. 
Because — for:  See  for. 

BOTH 

Both  is  from  the  Icelandic  bathir  or  bddhir,  having  as  its 
equivalent  in  Anglo-Saxon  bd,  nsed  in  the  same  sense. 

Strictly  as  uniting  two  words,  phrases,  or  sentences,  and  fol- 
lowed by  and  as  its  correlative :  equally ;  alike ;  as  well  as ;  as, 
this  remark  applies  both  to  science  and  to  philosophy.  See  Cor- 
relative Conjunctions.  Both  is,  however,  often  used  of  enu- 
merations including  more  than  two  items. 

BUT 

For  the  etymology  of  this  word  see  but  under  Prepositions. 

But  may  be  termed  by  preeminence  the  adversative  or  dis- 
junctive conjunction,  though  adversative  meanings  are  also  ex- 
pressed by  although,  except,  neither,  nor,  notwithstanding,  save, 
than,  though,  unless,  yet,  etc.  The  adversative  meaning  of  but 
shades  off,  however,  so  as  to  be  in  some  uses  scarcely  discernible. 

[But  has  many  and  varied  uses,  so  that  it  is  often  difficult  or 
impossible  to  decide  whether  the  word  is  a  conjunction,  a  prep- 
osition, an  adverb,  or  a  particle  having  various  offices.  As  the 
typical  word  used  in  the  adversative  coordination  of  sentences, 
but  expresses  fundamentally  opposition,  exception,  or  exclusion, 
but  its  meaning  is  often  restricted  to  slight  transition  or  simple 
continuance.  Standard  Dictionary.^ 

!•  Denoting  opposition : 

1,  Of  opposition  with  contrast  or  contrariety :  on  the  con- 
trary ;  on  the  other  hand ;  still ;  yet ;  nevertheless ;  however ; 
notwithstanding;  as,  he  is  strong  but  slow;  a  mind  acute  but 
narrow;  I  go,  but  I  return. 

They  prevented  me  in  the  day  of  my  calamity:  but  the  Lord 
was  my  stay.  Ps.  xviii,  18. 


215  Defined  and  Illustrated  but 

The  prudent  man  may  direct  a  state ;  hut  it  is  the  enthusiast 
who  regenerates  it, — or  ruins. 

Bulwer-Lytton  Rienzi  bk.  i,  ch.  8,  p.  111. 

Our  general  principle  of  unlimited  charters  has  enriched 
enormously  a  few  individuals,  hut  the  country  as  a  whole  is  cor- 
respondingly poorer.  Ely  Intro,  to  Polit.  Econ.  p.  99. 

Disarmed  hut  not  dishonored. 

Halleck  Field  of  the  Grounded  Arms  st.  13. 

The  other  pictures  were  dim  and  faded,  hut  this  one  protruded 
from  a  plain  background  in  the  strongest  relief,  and  with  wonder- 
ful truth  of  coloring.    Irving  Traveller,  Mysterious  Picture  p.  72. 

It  is  not  to  enjoy,  hut  to  be,  that  we  long  for. 

Robertson  Sermons  first  series,  ser.  xix,  p.  212. 

Beauties  in  vain  their  pretty  eyes  may  roll ; 
Charms  strike  the  sight,  hut  merit  wins  the  soul. 

Pope  Rape  of  the  Lock  can.  5, 1.  83. 

No  useless  coffin  enclosed  his  breast. 
Not  in  sheet  nor  in  shroud  we  wound  him ; 

But  he  lay,  like  a  warrior  taking  his  rest, 
With  his  martial  cloak  around  him. 

Chas.  Wolfe  Burial  of  Sir  John  Moore  st.  8. 

The  cross  their  standard,  hut  their  faith  the  sword. 

Montgomery  The  West  Indies  pt.  i,  st.  11. 

Beauty  is  Nature's  coin,  must  not  be  hoarded, 
But  must  be  current,  and  the  good  thereof 
Consists  in  mutual  and  partaken  bliss. 

Milton  Comus  1.  739. 

'Tis  not  a  lip,  or  eye,  we  beauty  call. 
But  the  joint  force  and  full  result  of  all. 

Pope  Essay,  On  Criticism  pt.  ii,  1.  45. 

2.  Of  opposition  with  difference :  otherwise  than ;  more  than ; 
in  every  direction  except :  often  followed  by  that ;  as,  I  can  not 
believe  hut  [that]  lie  means  well ;  I  can  not  hut  hope  that  he  will 
come. 

[Note. — In  place  of  "can  not  hut''  in  such  construction  the 
shortened  form  "can  hut''  is  often  used  with  similar  (but  not 


but  Conjunctions  216 

identical)  meaning.  **I  can  not  but  hope  that  he  will  come" 
means  **I  can  not  help  hoping,"  etc.,  while  "I  can  but  hope  that 
he  will  come"  means  "  I  can  only  hope,"  etc.,  implying  a  mnch 
less  confident  expectation.  Can  but  is  thus  ordinarily  a  weaker 
phrase  than  can  not  but,  though  both  are  in  good  usage.] 

No  one  is  so  accursed  by  fate, 
No  one  so  utterly  desolate, 
But  some  heart,  though  unknown, 
Besponds  unto  his  own. 

Longfellow  Endymion  st.  8. 

If  one  .  .  .  has  a  teachable  disposition,  he  cannot  but  improve. 
H.  T.  TuCKERMAN  The  Optimist,  Travel  p.  44. 

No  human  scheme  can  be  so  accurately  projected  but  some  lit- 
tle circumstance  intervening  may  spoil  it.   Spectator  Nov.  3, 1714. 

As  for  the  birds,  I  do  not  believe  there  is  one  of  them  but 
does  more  good  than  harm. 

Lowell  My  Study  Windows,  Garden  Acquaint,  p.  23. 

We  cannot  but  believe  that  there  is  an  inward  and  essential 
truth  in  art.  Carlyle  Essays,  Goethe  vol.  i,  p.  237. 

I  could  but  stare  upon  her ;  for  though  I  now  see  very  well 
what  she  was  driving  at,  .  .  .  I  was  never  swift  at  the  uptake  in 
such  flimsy  talk.    R.  L.  Stevenson  David  Balfour  ch.  19,  p.  250. 

3.  Of  opposition  with  concession :  though;  even  if;  however; 
as,  that  is  the  rule,  but  there  are  many  exceptions ;  I  think  so, 
but  am  not  sure. 

The  King  reigns,  but  his  ministers  govern. 

E.  A.  Freeman  Impressions  of  the  U.  S.  ch.  9,  p.  122. 

His  mind,  in  consequence  of  his  .  .  .  wife's  .  .  .  death,  had 
become  slightly  unhinged,  but  only  in  one  direction. 

W.  A.  Hammond  Strong-minded  Woman  ch.  1,  p.  9. 

Oampulsion  may  secure  conformity,  bui  never  obedience. 

Holland  Lissom  in  ZAf^  lesson  ix,  p.  125. 

Paris  is  not  indeed  the  gentleman,  but  he  is  the  fine  gentle- 
man, and  the  pattern  voluptuary,  of  the  heroic  ages. 

Gladstone  Juventus  Mundi  ch.  14,  p.  516. 


217  Defined  and  Illustrated  but 

But  the  old  three-cornered  hat, 
And  the  breeches,  and  all  that, 

Are  so  queer !  Holmes  Last  Leaf  st.  7. 

She  [Reason]  should  be  my  counsellor,     But  not  my  tyrant. 

Bryant  Jupiter  and  Venus  st.  1. 

We  can  disprove  a  particular  dogma,  hut  in  doing  so  our 
attitude  cannot  be  purely  negative,  any  more  than  when  we 
prove  it.  Caird  Kant  vol.  i,  int.,  ch.  1,  p.  21. 

Major  Lefebvre(M  rallied  a  little  for  losing  heart,  for  bun- 
gling his  business ;  hut  was  not  angry  with  him. 

Carlyle  Frederick  vol.  vi,  bk.  xx,  ch.  12,  p.  238. 

Borrowing  from  a  sinking  fund  is  always  rather  a  shabby 
dodge ;  hut  it  is  a  trick  familiar  to  all  statesmen  in  difficulties. 
McCarthy  Four  Georges  vol.  i,  ch.  20,  p.  309 

Longinus  seems  to  have  had  great  sensibility  hut  little  dis 
crimination.  Macaulay  Essays,  Athenian  Orators  p.  434 

II.  Of  addition,  continuance,  or  resumption,  with  slight  op 
position  or  contrast,  often  nearly  equal  to  and :  further ;  naw ; 
however ;  as,  hut  who  comes  here  ? 

But  in  this  sense  is  common  in  argumentative  use ;  as,  the 
whole  is  greater  than  any  of  its  parts ;  hut  the  segment  is  part 
of  the  circle ;  therefore,  etc. 

Reasons  are  the  pillars  of  the  fabric  of  a  sermon,  hut  simili- 
tudes are  the  windows  which  give  the  best  lights. 

Fuller  Holy  and  Profane  States,  Faithful  Minister  p.  84. 

But  where  is  she,  the  bridal  flower  ? 

Tennyson  In  Memoriam  con.,  st.  7. 

The  training  of  children  should  be  so  carried  on,  as  not  only 
to  fit  them  mentally  for  the  struggle  before  them,  hut  also  to 
make  them  physically  fit  to  bear  its  excessive  wear  and  tear. 

Spencer  Education  ch.  4,  p.  223. 

Unwounded  from  the  dreadful  close, 
But  breathless  all,  Fitz -James  arose. 

Scott  Lady  of  the  Lake  can.  5,  st.  16. 


but  Conjunctions  218 

Climbing  a  ladder  develops  physical  strength,  [but]  climbing 
a  mountain  feeds  nervous  energy. 

MuNGER  On  the  Threshold  ch.  6,  p.  137. 

Not  only  in  its  details  should  education  proceed  from  the 
simple  to  the  complex,  but  in  its  ensemble  also. 

Spencer  Education  ch.  2,  p.  121. 

III.  Of  omission,  exception,  or  exclusion-  omitting  or  ex- 
cluding the  fact  that ;  with  the  exception  that ;  except ;  unless ; 
as,  hut  for  human  selfishness,  all  might  prosper;  there  was  not  a 
man  but  was  ready  to  go. 

Had  we  no  other  quarrel  else  to  Rome,  but  that 
Thou  art  thence  banish'd,  we  would  muster  all 
From  twelve  to  seventy ;  and  pouring  war 
Into  the  bow^els  of  ungrateful  Rome, 
Like  a  bold  flood  o'erbear. 

Shakespeare  Coriolanus  act  iv,  sc.  5, 1. 133. 

The  world  is  still  deceiv'd  with  ornament. 
In  law,  what  plea  so  tainted  and  corrupt. 
But,  being  season'd  with  a  gracious  voice, 
Obscures  the  show  of  evil  ?    In  religion, 
What  damned  error,  but  some  sober  brow 
Will  bless  it  and  approve  it  with  a  text. 
Hiding  the  grossness  with  fair  ornament  ? 
Shakespeare  Merchant  of  Venice  act  iii,  sc.  2,  1.  74. 

With  nothing  else  on  earth  to  do,   But  all  day  long  to  bill  and  coo. 

Thackeray  Piscator  and  Piscatrix  st.  7. 

There's  not  a  wind  that  blows,  but  bears  with  it 

Some  rainbow  promise.  Kirke  White  Time  st.  5. 

Nothing  so  prosperous  and  pleasant,  but  it  hath  some  bitter- 
ness in  it.  Burton  Anat.  Melancholy  pt.  i,  §  1,  p.  94. 

There  is  not  a  nation  in  Europe  but  labors 
To  loady  itself  and  to  humbug  its  neighbors. 
Barham  Ingoldsby  Legends,  The  Auto-da-fe  can.  2,  st.  1. 

And  perhaps  his  greatest  glory,  both  as  a  poet  and  as  a  man, 
is,  that  he  was  no  respecter  of  sects,  or  parties  or  persons,  but 
simply  a  teller  of  the  truth. 

H.  N.  Hudson  Lectures  on  Shakespeare  vol.  i,  lect.  ii,  p.  70. 


2J19  Defined  and  Illustrated  eitlier 

IV,  Of  explanation,  furnishing  the  ground  of  something  pre- 
ceding :  that  it  is  a  fact  that ;  that :  hut  in  such  use  often  takes 
an  added  that,  forming  the  phrase  but  that ;  as,  I  can  not  deny 
but  [that]  you  have  a  strong  case. 

[Note. — After  deny,  doubt,  and  similar  words,  the  simple  that 
is  now  preferred ;  as,  I  deny  that  I  was  present ;  I  do  not  doubt 
that  he  said  it.] 

It  must  not  be  denied  but  I  am  a  plain-dealing  villain. 

Shakespeare  Much  Ado  About  Nothing  act  i,  sc.  3. 

[After  negative  sentences  the  dependent  sentence  introduced 
by  but  that  or  but  is  very  commonly  employed  instead  of  a  sub 
stantive  sentence. 

Maetzner  Eng.  Gram.  tr.  by  Grece,  vol.  iii,  p.  416.] 

V.  Of  comparison,  especially  of  nearness  in  time  :  than  ; 
when ;  before ,  as,  no  sooner  blown  but  blasted. 

The  waves  do  not  rise  but  when  the  winds  blow. 

Bancroft  United  States  vol.  ii,  ch.  16,  p.  527. 

Scarce  had  I  left  my  father,  but  I  met  him 
Borne  on  the  shields  of  his  surviving  soldiers. 

Addison  Cato  act  iv,  sc.  4. 

This  use  is  still  recognized,  but  is  now  infrequent.  With 
comparatives  than  is  now  considered  the  only  elegant  construc- 
tion ;  as,  I  had  no  sooner  turned  than  I  fell. 

EITHER 

Either  is  from  the  Anglo-Saxon  cegther,  allied  to  whether. 

As  a  disjunctive  correlative,  introducing  a  first  alternative,  a 
second  or  other  alternative  being  introduced  by  or:  in  one  of 
two  or  more  cases  indeterminately  and  indifferently  ;  as,  one 
must  either  go  or  stay.    See  Correlative  Conjunctions. 

[Note. — There  is  a  colloquial  use  of  either  standing  alone 
after  a  negative,  in  the  sense  of  at  all,  in  any  case,  anyway, 
which  is  not  approved ;  as,  I  did  not  do  it,  nor  he  either  [often 
neither]  ;  I  won't  tell  you,  either.] 


ere  CONJUNCTIONS  220 

Ere  is  from  the  Anglo-Saxon  cer,  a  contraction  of  ceror,  the 
comparative  of  cer,  before. 

Earlier  or  sooner  than;  rather  than;  before;  as,  he  will  die 
ere  he  will  yield. 

O  thou  sword  of  the  Lord,  how  long  will  it  be  ere  thou  be 
quiet?  Jer.  xlvii,  6. 

Ere  the  bat  hath  flown 
His  cloister'd  flight. 

Shakespeare  Macbeth  act  iii,  sc.  2,  1.  40. 

And  ere  the  early  bedtime  came 

The  white  drift  piled  the  window-frame. 

Whittier  Snow-Bound  st.  3. 

[The  Indians]  must  be  civilized,  ere  they  could  be  Christian- 
ized.       Cotton  Mather  Magnalia  Christi  vol.  i,  bk.  iii,  p.  560. 

After  a  lingering, — ere  she  was  aware, —  .  .  . 
The  little  innocent  soul  flitted  away. 

Tennyson  Enoch  Arden  1.  267. 

Distinctions 

Before — e'er — ere :  Ere  is  to  be  carefully  distinguished  from 
e'er,  the  contracted  form  of  ever. 

This  is  as  strange  a  thing  as  e'er  [ever]  I  looked  on. 

It  was  gone  ere  [before]  I  could  well  view  it. 

Both  e'er  and  ere  are  for  the  most  part  confined  to  poetry  or 
to  the  poetic  style,  by  which  fact  ere  is  distinguished  from 
before. 

EXCEPT 

For  the  etymology  of  this  word,  see  except,  under  Prepo- 
sitions. 

Noting  restriction  or  limitation :  if  it  were  not  (or  be  not) 
that ;  if  not ;  unless. 

Except  these  abide  in  the  ship  ye  cannot  be  saved. 

Acts  xxvii,  81. 

Except  ye  utter  by  the  tongue  words  easy  to  be  understood, 
how  shall  it  be  known  what  is  spoken  ?  1  Cor.  xiv,  9. 


221  Defined  and  Illustrated  for 

Not  resolnte,  except  so  much  were  done. 
Shakespeare  King  Henry  VI.  pt.  ii,  act  iii,  sc.  1,  1.  267. 

[Note.  — This  use  of  except  with  the  subjunctive  is  archaic, 
though  sometimes  adopted  by  recent  writers  in  imitation  of  the 
old  style.  In  the  examples  given  above,  we  should  now  use 
if— not  or  unless.  Except  is  now  used  as  a  conjunction  only 
where  it  may  be  viewed  as  equivalent  to  a  preposition  governing 
an  objective  clause  or  phrase,  especially  when  followed  by  that, 
for,  or  the  like.] 

[Like  all  or  most  prepositions  adopted  as  conjunctions,  except 
was  originally  and  properly  followed  by  that.  It  was  formerly 
much  used  as  a  conjunction 

' '  Slack  not  thy  riding  except  I  bid  thee. "  2  Kings  iv. ,  24. 

It  is  so  used  sixty- six  times  in  the  Bible,  and  unless  only  eight 
times.  At  present  the  pretailing,  and  I  think  better,  practice 
is  to  use  unless  exclusively  as  a  conjunction  and  except  as  a  prep- 
osition. Ramsey  English  Language  ch.  8,  p.  496.] 

In  ancient  Greece,  torture  was  never  employed  except  in 
cases  of  treason.     Lecky  Rationalism  in  Eur.  vol.  i,  ch.  3,  p.  332. 

Diocletian  is  supposed  never  to  have  seen  Rome  except  on  the 
single  occasion  when  he  entered  it  for  the  ceremonial  purpose  of 
a  triumph.  De  Quincey  The  Ccesars  ch.  6,  p.  247. 

Parted  without  the  least  regret 
Except  that  they  had  ever  met. 

CowPER  Pairing  lYme  Anticipated  1.  59. 

Excepting  is  used  as  a  conjunction  in  the  same  way  as  except. 

A  voice  that  was  by  no  means  bad,  excepting  that  it  ran  oc- 
casionally into  a  falsetto,  like  the  notes  of  a  split  reed. 

Irving  Sketch-Book,  Christmas  Eve  p.  250. 

FOR 

The  etymology  of  this  word  is  given  in  its  place  under 
Prepositions. 

[For  as  a  conjunction  is  used  only  of  relations  involving 
cause  or  reason.  It  was  formerly  much  used  with  that,  in  the 
combination /o?'  that.] 


for  Conjunctions  222 

1.  Denoting  the  reason  why  the  writer  or  speaker  believes  in 
his  statement,  or  that  which  he  wishes  to  present  as  a  reason  to 
another  person,  i,  e.  of  reason  as  distinguished  from  canse:  in 
view  of  the  reason  that;  seeing  that;  since;  as,  it  is  morning, 
for  I  hear  the  birds. 

[For  is  the  same  word  as  the  preposition /or.  It  is  an  abbre- 
viation of  [Anglo-Saxon]  ''for  tham  the/'  meaning  for  the  reason 
that.     The  that  continued  long  to  be  used: 

*'And  so  death  passed  upon  all  men /or  that  all  have  sinned." 

Bom.  v.,  12. 

"Famed  Beauclerc  called,  for  that  he  loved 
The  minstrel,  and  his  lay  approved." 

Ramsey  English  Language  ch.  8,  p.  497.] 

Blessed  are  the  pure  in  heart :  for  they  shall  see  God. 

Matt.  V,  8. 
The  post-boy  drove  with  fierce  career, 
For  threatening  clouds  the  morn  had  drowned. 

Wordsworth  Alice  Fell  st.  1. 

She  had  evidently  made  a  journey  of  some  length,  for  she 
was  encumbered  with  travelling  wraps. 

Frances  H.  Burnett  That  Lass  &  Lowrie's  ch.  2,  p.  21. 

We  speak  of  owls  and  bats  as  nocturnal.  In  reality  they  are 
crepuscular,  for  they  do  not  keep  on  the  wing  all  night,  unless  it 
is  moonlight.  C.  C.  Abbott  Upland  and  Meadow  p.  365. 

He  [man]  must  not  count  on  distant  ages,  for  he  is  an 
ephemeron.  H.  Rogers  Origin  of  the  Bible  lect.  ix,  p.  375. 

If  you  would  know  the  value  of  money  go  and  try  to  borrow 
some,  for.  He  that  goes  a  borrowing  goes  a  sorrowing. 

B.  Franklin  Poor  Richard's  Almanac  p.  9. 

For  he  always  ascribed  to  his  wit  that  laughter  which  was 
lavished  at  his  simplicity. 

Goldsmith  Vicar  of  Wakefield  ch.  5,  p.  30,  note. 

For  Nature  with  cheap  means  still  works  her  wonders  rare. 
Lowell  Indian-Summer  Reverie  st.  15. 

For  the  people  of  the  village 

Saw  the  flock  of  brant  with  wonder. 

Longfellow  Hiawatha  pt.  xvii,  st.  32. 


223  Defined  and  Illustrated  for 

Melancthon  himself  wrote  no  hymns,  for  the  one  or  two 
often  attributed  to  him  are  really  passages  from  his  writings 
versified  by  friends.  Catherine  Winkworth  Christian  Singers 
of  Germany  ch.  5,  p.  115. 

2.  Denoting  the  canse  of  a  fact,  action,  or  event,  i.  e.  cause  as 
iihtinguished  from  reason :  owing  to  the  fact  that ;  because ;  as, 
the  parrot  can  not  fly  far,  for  his  wings  are  clipped. 

The  people  were  astonished  at  his  doctrine :  For  he  taught 
them  as  one  having  authority.  Matt,  vii,  28,  29. 

My  falcon  now  is  sharp,  and  passing  empty ; 
And  till  she  stoop,  she  must  not  be  full-gorg'd. 
For  then  she  never  looks  upon  her  lure. 
Shakespeare  Taming  of  the  Shrew  act  iv,  sc.  1,  1.  193. 

It  was  late,  for  1  had  been  playing  in  the  last  piece ;  and  as  it 
was  a  benefit  night,  the  performance  had  been  protracted  to  an 
unusual  length.  Dickens  Pickwick  Papers  ch.  3,  p.  43. 

The  great  scope  of  his  work  [Don  Quixote]  was  didactic,  for 
it  was  a  satire  against  the  false  taste  of  the  age. 

Prescott  Biograph.  Miscell. ,  Cervantes  p.  163. 

I  never  proffer  advice,  for  I  know  nothing  is  more  un- 
welcome. H.  T.  King  The  Egotist  essay  Ixiii,  p.  97. 

It  was  no  use  to  argue  the  point ;  for  she  had  a  very  small 
head  Juliana  H.  Ewing  Jackanapes  ch.  1,  p.  8. 

True  science  is  modest ;  for  her  keen,  sagacious  eye  discerns 
that  there  are  deep,  undeveloped  mysteries,  where  the  vain 
sciolist  sees  all  plain. 

Everett  Orations,  Scientific  Knowledge  in  vol.  i,  p.  276. 

We  are  beginning  to  hear  of  a  science  of  charity ;  and  it  is 
sorely  needed,  for  old-fashioned  alms-giving  is  a  curse. 

R.  T  Ely  Intro,  to  Polit.  Economy  pt.  iv,  ch.  7,  p.  261. 

Distinctions 
As — because — for — since:  There  is  a  growing  tendency  to 
restrict  because  to  the  cause  and  for  to  the  reason  of  a  fact  or 
action  as  stated.  For  may  enter  the  realm  of  because  and  denote 
cause  properly  so  called,  but  because  can  not  enter  the  realm  of 
for  and  denote  a  mere  reason  which  is  not  a  cause.    We  can  not 


for  Conjunctions  224 

say,  *'It  is  going  to  rain  because  the  barometer  is  falling,"  the 
falling  of  the  mercury  in  the  barometer  being  not  a  cause,  since 
it  has  nothing  to  do  with  producing  the  rain ;  but  we  may  use 
for  in  such  case,  the  observed  change  in  the  barometer  being 
the  reason  for  the  belief  that  the  rain  will  come.  In  conversa- 
tion one  will  sometimes  hear  such  a  remark  as,  '*  The  sun  must 
have  set,  because  it  is  growing  dark."  But  darkness  is  not  the 
cause  of  sunset,  but  sunset  the  cause  of  darkness.  It  would  be 
more  correct  to  say,  *'It  is  dark  because  the  sun  has  set."  But 
this  latter  sentence  would  not  express  the  speaker's  meaning, 
which  is  that  the  darkness  is  the  reason  of  his  belief  that  the 
sun  has  set.  This  would  be  exactly  and  accurately  expressed 
\)j  for,  thus  :  "The  sun  must  have  set,  for  it  is  growing  dark." 
For  has  also  a  greater  independence  than  because,  so  that  it 
may  stand  at  the  beginning  of  a  sentence,  stating  the  reason  of 
something  preceding,  the  basis  of  an  argument,  or  the  like. 
But  because  can  not  stand  at  the  beginning  of  a  sentence,  except 
in  the  answer  to  a  question  where  it  follows  an  implied  affirma- 
tion; as,  "Why  did  you  go  there?"  "[I  went]  Because  my 
business  obliged  me  to  go."  It  would  be  a  violation  of  good 
usage  to  write,  "All  bodies  tend  to  fall  to  the  earth.  Because 
they  are  drawn  downward  by  gravitation."  The  sentence  must 
be  one:  "All  bodies  tend  to  fall  to  the  earth,  because,''  etc. 
That  is,  the  sentence  introduced  by  because  is  always  subordi- 
nate or  dependent.  But  for  may  introduce  a  coordinate  or  in- 
dependent sentence,  and  we  may  properly  write,  "All  bodies 
tend  to  fall  to  the  earth.  For  they  are  drawn  downward  by 
gravitation."  It  will  be  observed  that  in  this  latter  case  the 
falling  is  made  more  emphatic  standing  as  the  principal  thought 
in  a  closed  sentence,  while  in  the  construction  with  because  the 
mind  is  led  on  from  the  falling  to  its  cause,  which  becomes  the 
controlling  thought,  so  that  we  might  transpose  the  sentence  to 
read,  * '  The  cause  which  makes  bodies  tend  to  fall  to  the  earth 
is  the  attraction  of  gravitation." 


225  Defined  and  Illustrated        forasmnch 

Another  distinction  between  because  and  for  is  that  because 
is  somewhat  more  formal,  lacking  the  easy  naturalness  with 
which  for  may  often  come.    Thus  in  the  well-known  apostrophe 

to  the  ocean  • 

'Twas  a  pleasing  fear, 
For  I  was  as  it  were  a  child  of  thee. 

Byron  Childe  Harold  can.  4,  st.  184. 

Here  we  could  not  substitute  because  without  giving  the  art- 
less statement  something  of  the  formality  of  a  demonstration. 
But  as  or  since  would  dwarf  the  reason,  which  is  really  important, 
by  seeming  to  bring  it  in  incidentally  and  as  a  subordinate  matter. 

Of  the  conjunctions  that  introduce  a  cause  or  reason,  as 
unites  most  completely,  and  therefore  in  the  most  incidental 
way,  assigning  the  reason  as  a  matter  of  course.  "As  that  was 
not  my  name,  [of  course]  I  did  not  answer."  "5mce  that  was 
not  my  name"  would  imply  a  more  distinct  interval  of  con- 
sideration and  reasoning.  "Because  that  was  not  my  name" 
would  be  still  more  elaborate  and  argumentative,  and  is  the 
style  one  might  use  if  arraigned  for  silence,  and  required  to  give 
a  reason.  To  the  question,  "Why  did  you  not  answer  when  I 
called?"  the  reply  might  be,  "Because  that  [name  which  you 
called]  was  not  my  name." 

For  is  intermediate  between  the  incidentality  and  dependence 
of  as  or  since  and  the  argumentative  formality  of  becau^se. 

FORASHIJCH 

Forasmuch  is  an  old  compound  now  little  used  except  in  legal 
or  other  formal  or  technical  style. 

Denoting  a  cause  or  reason:  seeing  or  considering  that;  in 
view  of  the  fact  that;  seeing  that ;  since ;  because  •  followed  by  as. 

Faraismujoh  as  God  hath  shoWed  th^e  M  tlma»  tliBre  is  none  so 
discreet  and  wi^e  as  thou  &tt.  Gem.  sli*  89. 

Forasmuch  as  the  disease  in  many  of  its  forms  is  unattended 
with  organic  morbid  changes. 

Maudsley  Responsibility  in  Mental  Disease  ch.  9,  p.  271. 

15 


however  CONJUNCTIONS  226 

HOIVETER 

However,  compounded  of  how  and  ever,  is  used  both  as  an 
adverb  (see  Adverbs)  and  as  a  conjunction,  in  the  latter  case 
as  follows : 

As  a  word  of  limitation  or  abatement  interjected  into  a  state- 
ment to  modify  it  —  a  concessive  particle:  still;  yet;  though; 
nevertheless;  as, 'I  think  it  will  rain,  not,  however,  before  vre 
reach  home. 

However,  yet  there's  no  great  breach. 

Shakespeare  K.  Henry  VIII.  act  iv,  sc.  1, 1.  10(5. 

The  great  value  of  a  federate  union  of  the  colonies  had,  how 
ever,  sunk  deep  into  the  minds  of  men. 

Kent  Commentaries  vol.  i,  pt.  li,  lect.  x,  p.  198. 

This  curiosity  of  theirs,  however,  was  attended  with  very 
serious  effects.      '      Goldsmith  Vicar  of  Wakefield  ch.  x,  1.  45. 

Distinctions 
See  notwithstanding. 

IF 

If  is  from  the  Anglo-Saxon  gif,  used  in  the  same  sense. 

[Home  Tooke's  plausible  conjecture  that  this  word — formerly 
sometimes  written  gif— is  the  imperative  of  give,  proves  to  be 
ill  founded,  as  the  Gothic,  Old  High  German,  Old  Saxon,  and 
Icelandic  are  without  g,  and  the  primary  meaning  of  the  word 
is  not  to  give  but  to  doubt, — Icel.  if,  uncertainty,  efa,  to  doubt. 
Moreover  the  g  can  be  accounted  for.  The  Gothic  equivalent 
was  iha  or  ibai,  but  to  this  was  sometimes  prefixed  yah,  and, 
making  yabai,  and  if ;  not  that  it  was  written  with  y  but  rather 
with  j.  Passing  into  Old  Frisian  and  Anglo-Saxon  the  word 
took  the  form  jef  or  gef,  g  alternating  between  the  sounds  of  our 
g  and  y.  If  introduces  a  proposition  as  more  or  less  doubtful, 
connected  with  another  in  such  wise  that  if  the  first  holds  good, 
so  does  the  second;  if  the  first  fail,  the  second  v^ill  fail  with  it. 
Matthews  English  Language  ch.  8,  p.  497.] 

!•  Of  condition,  denoting  that  in  case  one  statement  is  true 
another  must  be,  that  in  case  one  event  happens  another  will 
follow,  supposing  that  one  thing  is  true  another  must  be,  or  the 


227  Defined  and  Illustrated  if 

like :  in  case  that ;  granting  or  supposing  that ;  on  condition  that ; 
as,  if  he  falls  it  will  kill  him ;  if  I  said  that,  I  regret  it ;  if  the  sky 
falls,  we  shall  catch  larks ;  if  x  equals  a  and  y  equals  a,  then  x 
and  y  must  be  equal  to  each  other. 

If  any  man  be  in  Christ,  he  is  a  new  creature.      2  Cor.  v,  17. 

There's  nothing  ill  can  dwell  in  such  a  temple 
If  the  ill  spirit  have  so  fair  a  house. 
Good  things  will  strive  to  dwell  with't. 

Shakespeare  Tempest  act  i,  sc.  2, 1.  458. 

Or,  if  Sion's  hill 
Delight  thee  more,  and  Siloa's  brook  that  flow'd 
Fast  by  the  oracle  of  God. 

Milton  Paradise  Lost  bk.  i,  1. 10. 

Periander  is  said  to  have  vowed  a  golden  statue  to  Jupiter  if 
he  won  the  Olympic  chariot-race. 

Rawlinson  Herodotus  vol.  iii,  bk.  v,  p.  247,  note  8. 

Let  no  guilty  man  escape,  if  it  can  be  avoided.  No  personal 
consideration  should  stand  in  the  way  of  performing  a  public 
duty.  Ulysses  S.  Grant  Indorsement  of  a  Letter  Relating  to 
the  Whiskey  Ring  July  29, 1875. 

And  when  religious  sects  ran  mad, 
He  held,  in  spite  of  all  his  learning. 

That  if  a  man's  belief  is  bad. 
It  will  not  be  improved  by  burning. 
Praed  Poems  of  Life  and  Manners  pt.  ii  The  Vicar  st.  9. 

2,  Of  concession:  assuming,  allowing,  or  admitting  that; 
even  on  the  supposition  that;  although;  though;  as,  i/he  was 
there,  I  did  not  know  it ;  if  he  is  ignorant,  he  has  good  sense ;  I 
will  go,  if  I  die  for  it. 

The  noble  Brutus 
Hath  told  you  Csesar  was  ambitious : 
If  it  were  so,  it  was  a  grievous  fault ; 
And  grievously  hath  Caesar  answered  it. 

Shakespeare  Julius  Ccesar  act  iii,  sc.  2, 1.  75. 

There  is  no  creature  loves  me ; 
And  if  I  die,  no  soul  shall  pity  me. 

Shakespeare  Richard  III.  act  v,  sc.  3,  1.  200. 


If  Conjunctions  22§ 

Thrones,  dominations,  princedoms,  virtues,  powers; 

If  these  magnific  titles  yet  remain 

Not  merely  titular.        Milton  Pm^adise  Lost  bk.  v,  1.  774. 

The  old  mayor  climbed  the  belfry  tower. 
The  ringers  ran  by  two,  by  three ; 
*  •  Pull,  if  ye  never  pulled  before ; 

Good  ringers,  pull  your  best,"  quoth  he. 
Jean  Ingelow  High  Tide  on  the  Coast  of  Lincolnshire  1.  1,  sq. 

There  is  .  .  .  but  little  if  any  evidence  of  diminished  activ- 
ity in  crustal  movement  during  recent  geologic  time. 

R.  S.  Woodward  in  Am.  Geologist  l^ov.,  1889,  p.  280. 

Every  Sanskrit  scholar  knows  that  Nirvana  means  originally 
the  blowing  out  ....  The  human  soul,  when  it  arrives  at  its 
perfection,  is  blown  out,  if  we  use  the  phraseology  of  the  Bud- 
dhists, like  a  lamp.         Max  Muller  Chips  vol.  i,  ch.  11,  p.  279, 

A  true  gentlemah  is  different  from  anybody  else,  even  if  he 
is  sea-sick,  and  if  there  is  a  greater  test  than  that,  I  do  not  know 
what  it  is ! 

H.  W.  Beecher  in  Eleanor  Kirk's  Beecher  as  a  Humorist  p.  76. 

If  he  [Browning]  had  a  message,  it  was  a  message  of  belief. 
A.  Lang  in  Contemporary  Review  July,  1891,  p.  80. 

I'll  give  you  a  bit  of  my  mind  if  I  never  speak  again. 

E.  E.  Hale  Ups  and  Doicns  ch.  14,  p.  146. 

3.  Of  doubt,  uncertainty,  or  question :  whether ;  as,  I  doubt 
if  it  is  wise ;  I  don't  know  if  he  will  stay  or  go ;  I  am  not  sure  if 
he  is  at  home ;  tell  me  if  you  will  do  it. 

Where  our  expectations  have  been  highly  wrought,  it  is  no 
small  gain  if  we  are  not  disappointed. 

W.  Allston  Monaldi  ch.  8,  p.  94. 

As  if —  as  though :  See  as. 

Distinctions 

An — and — if:  For  cw^,  cm*i  or  and  used  in  the  sense  of  if&ee 
under  anp. 

[Note. — If  is  often  omitted  from  a  conditional  clause,  and 
the  hypothetical  character  of  the  clause  indicated  by  inversion ; 
as  the  statement  **  We  should  have  finished  if  we  had  not  been 


229  Defined  and  Illustrated  if 

interrupted"  maybe  transformed  into  "We  should  have  finished 
had  we  not  been  interrupted." 

For  woman  is  not  nndevelopt  man 
But  diverse.     Could  we  make  her  as  the  man 
Sweet  love  were  slain ;  his  dearest  bond  is  this, 
Not  like  to  like  but  like  in  difference. 

Tennyson  The  Princess  vii,  1.  260. 

Many  a  man  .  .  .  struts  abroad  a  hero,  whose  claims  we 

would  .  .  .  laugh  at,  could  we  but  .  .  .  see  his  numskull  bare. 

Thackeray  Critical  Reviews  ch.  1,  p.  362. 

Had  they  [the  Evangelists]  been  all  uniform  in  their  narra- 
tion, we  should  have  had  good  cause  to  suspect  fraud  and  col- 
lusion. HoRNE  Intro,  to  the  Bible  vol.  i,  ch.  3,  §  1,  p.  135. 

Many  a  member  of  trades-unions  in  Scotland  would  not  have 
been  willing  to  commit  outrages  upon  the  person  of  his  neigh- 
bors, or  even  murder,  had  it  not  been  called  slating,  or  by  some 
other  technical  term. 

F.  LiEBER  Manual  of  Political  Ethics  vol.  i,  §  56,  p.  204.] 

[Note. — If  with  a  negative,  as  if  not,  has  nearly  or  quite  the 
force  of  unless. 

There  seems  to  be  a  constant  decay  of  all  our  ideas ;  even  of 
those  which  are  struck  deepest,  and  in  minds  the  most  retentive, 
so  that  if  they  be  not  sometimes  renewed  by  repeated  exercises 
of  the  senses,  or  reflection  on  those  kinds  of  objects  which  at  first 
occasioned  them,  the  print  wears  out,  and  at  last  there  remains 
nothing  to  be  seen.     Locke  Human  Understanding  bk.  ii,  ch.  10. 

He  had  sat  down  to  two  hearty  meals  that  might  have  been 

mistaken  for  dinners  if  he  had  not  declared  them  to  be  'snaps.' 

George  Eliot  Janefs  Repentance  ch.  1,  p.  3. 

If  the  power  to  lead  is  in  you,  other  men  will  follow ;  if  it  is 
not  in  you,  nothing  will  make  them  follow. 

E.  E.  Hale  What  Career  9  ch.  1,  p.  27. 

A  national  debt,  if  it  is  not  excessive,  will  be  to  us  a  national 
blessing.     Alex.  Hamilton  Letter  to  Robert  Morris  April  30, 1781. 

We  do  love  beauty  at  first  sight ;  and  we  do  cease  to  love  it, 
if  it  is  not  accompanied  by  amiable  qualities. 

Lydia  Maria  Child  Beauty 


lest  Conjunctions  2J50 

Be  she  fairer  than  the  day, 
Or  the  flowery  meads  in  May, 
If  she  be  not  so  to  me, 
What  care  I  how  fair  she  be  ? 
George  Wither  The  Shepherds  Resolution.^ 

As  if  or  as  though :  Either  of  these  phrases  may  be  used  with 
a  verb  understood  (as  it  would  be  if,  or  the  like),  the  same  or  in 
the  same  manner  that  it  would  be  if. 

It  was  as  if  the  herald  at  a  tournament  had  dropped  his  trun- 
cheon, and  the  fray  must  end. 

T.  W.  HiGGiNSON  Oldport  Days  ch.  1,  p.  26. 

It  seem'd  as  if  their  mother  Earth 
Had  swallow'd  up  her  warlike  birth. 

Scott  Lady  of  the  Lake  can.  5,  st.  10. 

L.EIST 

Lest  is  the  contraction  of  the  Anglo-Saxon  phrase  thy  Ices  the, 
the  less  that. 

Of  negative  purpose,  expectation,  or  apprehension:  in  order 
that  .  .  .  not;  for  fear  that;  that  .  .  .  not;  as,  watch  lest  the 
enemy  surprise  you ;  he  feared  lest  darkness  should  overtake  him. 

I  saw  the  sun  sinking  gradually,  and  I  got  quite  alarmed  lest 
we  should  be  benighted. 

Victoria  Life  in  the  Highlands,  Sept.  21,  '44  p.  46. 

Distinctions 
Lest — that :  Lest  includes  the  meaning  of  that  with  the  addi- 
tion of  a  negative,  so  that  it  is  equivalent  to  that  not.  *'  Beware 
lest  you  fail  by  neglect "  means  "Beware  that  you  do  not  fail  by 
neglect."  When  lest  is  used  of  purpose,  the  addition  of  not 
makes  the  double  negative,  which  is  equivalent  to  an  affirmative ; 
" Take  care  lest  you  do  not  fall  asleep "  means  "Take  care  that 
you  do  fall  asleep."  Not  should  never  be  used  after  lest,  unless 
the  intention  is  to  reverse  the  apparent  meaning.  Singular  mis- 
takes are  often  made  by  failure  to  observe  this  distinction,  as  in 
the  following : 


231  Defined  and  Illustrated  neitlier 

When  a  young  man  enters  the  world,  he  must  take  heed  lest 
he  be  not  ensnared  by  his  companions  into  vicious  practices. 

Crabb  Synonyms  under  Heed  p.  506. 

The  author  should  have  written  either  ' '  take  heed  lest  he  be 
ensnared"  or  *'take  heed  that  he  be  not  ensnared."  The  two 
forms  can  not  be  combined.     The  combination  spoils  the  caution. 

IVEITHER 

Neither  is  the  negative  of  either,  commonly  used  with  a  fol- 
lowing nor.    See  Correlative  Conjunctions. 

Denying  the  first  of  two  (or  more)  alternative  clauses:  not 
either ;  as,  there  was  neither  food  nor  fire. 

If  any  would  not  work,  neither  should  he  eat.    ^  Thes.  iii,  10. 

The  dialects  of  ancient  Greece  were  neither  so  variant,  nor 
so  bad  as  those  of  the  different  districts,  and  even  related  coun- 
tries, of  the  British  isles.    Cox  Interviews,  With  Chalmers  p.  69. 

]veye:rthel.ess 

A  compound  of  three  English  words,  never,  the,  less.  The 
meaning  can  be  shown  by  using  the  words  separately;  as,  *'I 
should  never  do  it  the  less  for  your  threats,"  equal  in  meaning  to 
"In  spite  of  your  threats  I  should  do  it  nevertheless." 

Denoting  adversative  coordination:  none  the  less;  not  the 
less;  notwithstanding;  yet. 

A  man  after  death  is  not  a  natural  but  a  spiritual  man ;  nev- 
ertheless he  still  appears  in  all  respects  like  himself. 

SwEDENBORG  Conjugal  Love  pt.  xxxi. 

[With  nevertheless  we  may  well  compare  the  expression  of 
the  same  idea  in  separate  words  in  the  phrases  none  the  less,  not 
the  less. 

But  not  the  less  the  blare  of  the  tumultuous  organ  wrought 
its  own  separate  creations.  De  Quince y  Opium- Eater,  Suspiria, 
Affliction  of  Childhood  pt.  i,  p.  186.] 

Distinctions 
See  Distinctions  under  notwithstanding. 


nor  Conjunctions  232 

IVOR 

Nor  is  a  contraction  of  the  Middle  English  nothei\  a  variant 
of  neither. 

As  a  negative  correlative  (see  Correlative  Conjunctions) 
and  not ;  likewise  not ,  also  not. 

1 .  As  correlative  of  a  preceding  negative,  usually  neither  or 
not ;  as,  he  took  neither  food  nor  drink ;  he  did  not  eat  nor  did 
he  drink. 

He  shall  not  fail  nor  be  discouraged.  Isa.  xlii,  4, 

For  I  have  neither  wit,  nor  words,  nor  worth, 
Action,  7ior  utterance,  nor  the  power  of  speech, 
To  stir  men's  blood. 

Shakespeare  Julius  Caesar  act  iii,  sc.  2,  1  222. 

Not  spoke  in  word,  nor  blazed  in  scroll, 
But  borne  and  branded  on  my  soul. 

Scott  Lady  of  the  Lake  can.  4,  st.  6. 

Let  not  our  variance  mar  the  social  hour, 
Nor  wrong  the  hospitality  of  Randolph. 

John  Home  Douglas  act  iv,  sc.  1. 

The  appellations  in  common  use  to  designate  these  processes, 
or  the  capacities  for  their  exercise,  as  fancy,  imagination,  inven- 
tion, reverie,  are  not  applied  with  technical  exactness,  nor  do 
they  answer  the  ends  of  a  philosophical  explanation. 

Porter  Human  Intellect  pt.  ii,  ch.  6,  p.  351. 

Spirit  is  not  matter,  nor  matter  spirit ;  .  .  .  the  realistic  dual 
ism  which  lies  at  the  bottom  of  all  human  convictions,  underlies 
also  all  the  revelations  of  the  Bible. 

C.  Hodge  Systematic  Theology  vol.  i,  pt.  i,  ch.  5,  p.  379. 

No  Spring,  nor  Summer's  beauty,  hath  such  grace, 
As  I  have  seen  in  one  autumnal  face. 

John  Donne  The  Autumnal  1.  1 

In  this  intense  eagerness  to  press  forward,  he  [Pestalozzi] 
never  stopped  to  examine  results,  nor  to  co-ordinate  means  with 
ends.  Jos.  Payne  Science  of  Education  lect.  iii,  p.  84. 

2.  As  correlative  of  a  negative  understood  or  implied ;  and 
not;  as,  they  sat  still,  nor  moved  a  muscle. 


233  Defined  and  Illustrated        |  gtanci\n« 

[Here  the  negation  of  motion  is  implied  in  the  sitting  still. 
The  clause  with  nor  expands  the  idea  and  carries  it  to  the  ex- 
treme of  immobility.] 

Two  dogs  of  black  Saint  Hubert's  breed 

Unmatched  for  courage,  breath,  and  speed, 

Fast  on  his  flying  traces  came, 

And  all  but  won  that  desperate  game ; 

Nor  nearer  might  the  dogs  attain, 

Nor  farther  might  the  quarry  strain. 

Scott  Lady  of  the  Lake  can.  1,  st.  7. 

Silent,  nor  wanting  due  respect,  the  crowd 
Stood  humbly  round  and  gratulation  bowed. 

Crabbe  Parish  Register  pt.  ii,  st.  14. 

Go  put  your  creed  into  your  deed. 
Nor  speak  with  double  tongue. 

Emerson  Ode,  Concord  July  4, 1857. 

.There  his  spirit  shaped 
Her  prospects,  nor  did  he  believe, — he  saw. 

Wordsworth  The  Excursion  bk.  1,  st.  12. 

Nor  would  I  change  my  buried  love 
For  any  heart  ot  living  mould. 

Campbell  O'Connor's  Child  st.  16. 

3.  As  an  introductory  negative  in  place  of  neither    used  by 

older  writers  and  in  poetii"  ftyle ;  as,  nor  praise  nor  blame  could 

move  him. 

Nor  disco:»tppts  it  me  to  leave  the  world. 

Thos.  Kyd  Spanish  Tragedy  act  iii,  sc.  1. 

Distinctions 
See  Distinctions  ^nder  or. 

IVOTWITHSTAIVDIIVO 

See  explanation  of  this  compound  form  under  Participial 
Prepositions. 

As  denoting  adversative  coordination:  in  spite  of  the  fact 
that ;  although ;  though ;  as,  notwithstanding  that  he  knew  his 
danger  he  took  no  precautions. 


or  Conjunctions  234 

■  i : « 

John  Hunter,  notwithstanding  he  had  a  bee  in  his  bonnet, 
was  really  a  great  man.  De  Quincey  Narrative  and  Miscel. 
Papers,  Coleridge  and  Opium  Eating  p.  141. 

Distinctions 
Although  —  but — hoidbeit  —  however  —  nevertheless  —  notwith- 
standing—  still  —  though  —  yet:    These  terms  are  very  clearly 
discriminated  in  the  following  extract  • 

{However  simply  waives  discussion,  and  (like  the  archaic 
howbeit)  says,  "be  that  as  it  may,  this  is  true";  nevertheless 
concedes  the  truth  of  what  precedes,  but  claims  that  what  fol- 
lows is  none  the  less  true;  notwithstanding  marshals  the  two 
statements  face  to  face,  admits  the  one  and  its  seeming  contra- 
diction to  the  other,  while  insisting  that  it  can  not,  after  all, 
withstand  the  other ,  as,  notwithstanding  the  force  of  the  enemy 
is  superior,  we  shall  conquer.  Yet  and  still  are  weaker  than  no^ 
withstanding,  while  stronger  than  but.  Though  and  although 
make  as  little  as  possible  of  the  concession,  dropping  it,  as  it 
were,  incidentally,  as,  ''though  we  are  guilty,  thou  art  good"; 
to  say  "we  are  guilty,  but  thou  art  good,"  would  make  the  con- 
cession  of  guilt  more  emphatic.  .  .  .    Standard  Dictionary. 1 

OR 

Or  is  a  contraction  of  other  from  the  Anglo-Saxon  dwther, 
from  a  ,  ever,  +  hwcether,  whether.  See  also  Correlative 
Conjunctions 

Or  is  a  disjunctive  conjunction,  without  the  adversative 
meaning  found  in  but,  denoting  one  of  two  or  more  alternatives. 

1.  Denoting  an  object  the  acceptance  of  which  excludes  the 
associated  object  or  objects:  either;  else;  otherwise;  as,  sink 
or  swim :  often  as  correlative  of  either  or  whether;  as,  either  go 
or  stay;  I  am  considering  whether  I  shall  ride  or  walk.  See 
Correlative  Conjunctions. 

But  oars  alone  can  ne'er  prevail 

To  reach  the  distant  coast ; 
The  breath  of  Heaven  must  swell  the  sail, 

Or  all  the  toil  is  lost. 

Cowper  Human  Frailty  st.  6. 


235  Defined  and  Illustrated  or 

By  the  all-powerful  dispensations  of  Providence,  I  have  been 
protected  beyond  all  human  probability  or  expectation.  Wash- 
ington in  Sparks's  Writings  of  Washington  vol.  ii,  pt.  i,  p.  89. 

In  England,  in  the  time  of  James,  a  law  .  .  .  passed  com- 
pelling everybody  to  attend  church,  or  pay  a  fine. 

C.  C.  Coffin  Building  the  Nation  ch.  6,  p.  79. 

Or  could  or  should  a  rational  and  politically  viable  people  im- 
mediately proceed  to  the  solution  of  such  a  problem  ?  H.  von 
HOLST  Constitutional  Hist.  U.  S.,  1828- J^B  tr.  by  Lalor,  ch.  2,  p.  106. 

Words  that  wise  Bacon  or  brave  Raleigh  spake. 

Pope  Imitation  of  Horace  bk.  ii,  ep.  ii,  1.  168. 

I  must  soon  treat  them  as  the  pigeons  treat  their  squabs — 
push  them  off  the  limb,  and  make  them  put  out  their  wings  or 
fall.  John  Adams  in  Seward's  J.  Q.  Adams  ch.  2,  p.  58. 

Whenever  a  column  saw  him  at  their  head,  they  knew  that 
it  was  to  be  victory  or  annihilation.  J.  T.  Headley  Napoleon 
and  his  Marshals,  Ney  in  vol.  ii,  p.  313. 

2.  Denoting  equivalence  or  interchangeableness,  as  by  intro- 
ducing another  name,  title,  or  term,  or  giving  a  definition :  other- 
wise called;  in  other  phrase;  in  other  words;  that  is  to  say; 
alias ;  as,  carbonic  acid  or  [as  otherwise  known]  carbon  dioxid ; 
the  solid  matter  precipitates  or  [to  use  another  word]  settles 
from  the  solution ;  the  czar  or  emperor ;  this  adventurer  Brooks 
or  Johnson. 

The  master  or  commander  of  any  ship,  bark,  pink,  or  catch. 
Longfellow  New  England  Tragedies,  John  Endicott  act  ii,  sc.  2. 

The  inferior  or  trousered  half  of  the  creation. 

T.  Hughes  Tom  Brown  at  Oxford  vol.  i,  ch.  19,  p.  309. 

The  spot  selected  was  a  rocky  bay,  or  embouchure  of  a  small 
stream.     N.  Macleod  Highland  Parish,  Boys  of  the  Manse  p.  45. 

[Note. — In  poetry  or  is  often  used  for  either  as  the  first  of 
two  correlatives ;  as,  or  in  the  clouds  or  waves. 

Our  acts,  our  angels  are,  or  good  or  ill. 
Our  fatal  shadows  that  walk  by  us  still. 
John  Fletcher  Upon  an  Honest  Man's  Fortune  1.  37.] 


provided  CONJUNCTIONS  236 

The  phrase  or  ever  {or  e'er)  is  also  common  in  archaic  or 
poetic  use,  meaning  before  ever ;  before  the  earliest  period  of ; 
as,  in  the  beginning  or  ever  the  earth  was. 

The  lions  had  the  mastery  of  them,  and  brake  all  their  bones  in 
pieces  or  ever  they  came  at  the  bottom  of  the  den.      Dan.  vi,  24. 

PROVIDED 

Provided  is  the  past  participle  of  the  verb  provide,  used  in- 
dependently with  the  force  of  a  conjunction. 

A  conditional  particle  denoting  limitation,  restriction,  or  ex- 
ception :  it  being  stipulated  or  understood  (that) ;  on  condition 
(that) ;  as,  provided  the  funds  shall  be  sufficient.  Thus,  every 
mortgage  is  a  full  conveyance  of  the  mortgaged  property  to  the 
mortgagee,  provided  that  if  the  loan  shall  be  paid  at  maturity, 
the  conveyance  shall  then  become  null  and  void. 

A  man  may  be  a  knave  or  a  fool  or  both  (as  it  may  happen), 
and  yet  be  a  most  respectable  man,  in  the  common  and  author- 
ized sense  of  the  term,  provided  he  saves  appearances. 

Hazlitt  Table  Talk  second  series,  vol.  ii,  essay  xxxv,  p.  194. 

SAVE 

Save  is  explained  in  its  place  under  Prepositions.  Its  con- 
junctive force  would  be  at  once  made  evident  by  supposing  the 
sentence  or  clause  that  follows  it  to  be  the  collective  object  of 
the  preposition  save;  as,  all  is  still  save  (that  the  crickets  chirp 
incessantly). 

A  particle  of  limitation  or  exception :  except ;  unless 

The  glen  was  fair  as  some  Arcadian  dell. 

All  shadow,  coolness,  and  the  rush  of  streams, 
Save  where  the  sprinkled  blaze  of  noonday  fell. 

Bayard  Taylor  The  Sleeper  st.  1. 

SEEIIVO 

Seeing  is  the  present  participle  of  the  verb  see,  treated  by 
some  grammarians  as  a  conjunction,  though  capable  of  being 
treated  as  a  participle,  like  considering,  etc. 


237  Defined  ai^d  Illustrated  since 

An  explanatory  or  causal  particle :  in  view  of  the  fact  (that) ; 
considering ;  since ;  as,  seeing  you  have  come,  I  will  settle  it  now. 

See  the  preposition  since  under  Prepositions. 
Denoting  sequence  in  time  or  in  logical  connection : 

1 .  Of  time :  from  and  subsequently  to  the  time  when ;  dur- 
ing or  within  the  time  after  that ;  in  the  interval  between  the 
present  and  (some  designated  time,  act,  or  event) ;  as,  it  is  years 
since  we  met ;  we  have  both  changed  much  since  we  parted. 

Yet  know  withal, 
Since  thy  original  lapse,  true  liberty 
Is  lost.  Milton  Paradise  Lost  bk.  xii,  1.  79. 

Twelve  years  are  past  since  we  had  tidings  from  him. 

Wordsworth  The  Brothers  st.  25. 

If  the  men  had  been  captured,  it  must  have  been  since  the 
captain's  departure.  Irving  Washington  vol.  i,  ch.  10,  p.  96. 

Fountains  and  wells,  ever  since  the  scriptural  days,  have  been 
noted  gossiping-places  in  hot  climates. 

Irving  Alhamhra,  Moors  Legacy  p.  297. 

2,  Of  cause  or  reason :  because  of  the  fact  that ;  inasmuch  as ; 
seeing  that ;  because ;  as,  since  you  ask  me,  I  will  tell  you. 

Woman's  faith  must  be  strong  indeed  since  thine  has  not  yet 
failed.  Hawthorne  Mosses,  Egotism  p.  303. 

For  since  he  would  sit  on  a  Prophet's  seat 

As  a  lord  of  the  Human  soul, 
We  needs  must  scan  him  from  head  to  feet. 

Were  it  but  for  a  wart  or  a  mole. 

Tennyson  The  Dead  Prophet  st.  14. 

Distinctions 
Because— for — since :  Compare  because  ;  for. 

So  is  from  the  Anglo-Saxon  swd,  so,  chiefly  used  as  an  ad- 
verb, but  in  certain  cases  having  conjunctive  force. 


still  Conjunctions  238 

Denoting  a  concomitant  or  condition :  provided  that ;  on  con- 
dition that ;  as,  he  will  be  content  so  the  debt  is  but  paid. 

Appearances  to  save,  his  only  care ; 
So  things  seem  right,  no  matter  what  they  are.  ^ 

Churchill  Rosciad  1.  299. 

STIL.L. 

Still,  from  Anglo-Saxon  stille,  is  an  adverb  often  nsed  with 
conjunctive  force. 

Noting  a  fixed  opinion,  choice,  or  decision  maintained  not- 
withstanding any  argument,  opposition,  or  doubt:  in  spite  of 
anything  to  the  contrary ;  after  all ;  nevertheless ;  notwithstand- 
ing; as,  I  see  your  reasons,  still  I  hold  my  opinion;  though  I 
know  the  danger,  still  I  shall  go. 

Tacitus  in  fragments  is  still  the  colossal  torso  of  history. 

D'lSRi^ELi  Curios,  of  Lit,  Lost  Works  vol.  i,  p.  113. 

TUAN 

Than,  from  Anglo-Saxon  thanne,  is  by  preeminence  the  parti- 
cle of  comparison. 

After  a  comparative  adjective  or  adverb,  denoting  the  infe- 
riority of  that  which  follows  to  that  which  precedes:  when 
compared  with;  as  or  if  compared  with;  as,  health  is  better 
than  wealth ;  I  had  rather  stay  than  go ;  I  find  it  easier  to  work 
than  to  idle. 

[Note. — Than  is  one  of  the  most  general  of  connectives,  join- 
ing either  single  words,  extended  descriptions,  clauses,  or  prop- 
ositions ;  wherever  one  object,  idea,  or  statement  can  be  compared 
with  another,  than  expresses  the  inferiority  of  the  latter  element 
to  the  former  in  the  respect  compared. 

A  pronoun  after  than  is  now  commonly  construed  as  the  sub- 
ject of  a  verb  understood,  and  hence  is  put  in  the  nominative 
case;  as,  he  is  richer  than  I  [am].  The  use  of  the  objective 
(taller  than  me,  etc. )  common  in  the  older  English  is  now  held  to 
be  incorrect.  The  single  exception  is  the  phrase  than  whom, 
which  is  accepted  as  correct.    Compare  Notes  (g) ,  (h)  pp.  241-42.  ] 


b 


239  Defined  and  Illustrated  tiian 

I  were  better  to  be  eaten  to  death  with  rust,  than  to  be 
scoured  to  nothing  with  perpetual  motion. 

Shakespeare  ^  K.  Henry  IV.  act  i,  sc.  2,  1.  218. 

And  ladies  of  the  Hesperides,  that  seemed 
Fairer  than  feign'd  of  old. 

Milton  Paradise  Regained  bk.  ii,  1.  357. 

For  age  is  opportunity  no  less 
Than  youth  itself,  though  in  another  dress, 
And  as  the  evening  twilight  fades  away 
The  sky  is  filled  with  stars,  invisible  by  day. 

Longfellow  Moritiiri  Salutamus  1.  281. 

The  story  .  .  .  would  fill  a  bigger  folio  volume,  or  a  longer 
series  of  duodecimos,  than  could  prudently  be  appropriated  to 
the  annals  of  all  New  England  during  a  similar  period. 

Hawthorne  House  of  Seven  Gables  ch.  1,  p.  10. 

Not  more  the  rose,  the  queen  of  flowers, 
Outblushes  all  the  bloom  of  bower, 
Than  she  unrivall'd  grace  discloses ; 
The  sweetest  rose,  where  all  are  roses. 

Moore  Odes  of  Anacreon  ode  Ixvi. 

It  is  always  much  easier,  however,  to  follow  a  pattern  than  a 
precept.  Geikie  Life  of  Christ  vol.  ii,  ch.  37,  p.  81. 

A  chill  sharper  than  that  of  the  frosty  air— a  chill  of  fear — 
smote  him.  Lew  Wallace  Ben-Hur  bk.  i,  ch.  11,  p.  61. 

No  one  has  more  to  gain  from  a  thorough  system  of  civil 
service  reform  than  the  President.  The  present  system  makes  a 
wire-puller  of  him. 

Bryce  Am.  Commonwealth  vol.  i,  pt.  i,  ch.  6,  p.  61. 

The  Republic  has  no  better  citizens  in  peace  and  would  have 
no  braver  soldiers  in  war  than  the  men  who  twenty -five  years 
ago  wore  the  gray.  H.  W.  Grady  New  South  ch.  1,  p.  147. 

[Notes. — (a)  The  comparative  inferiority  may  be  actual  su- 
periority. When  the  first  element  of  the  comparison  is  declared 
to  be  less  than,  worse  than,  or  otherwise  inferior,  it  is  evident  that 
the  second  element  (following  than)  is  greater,  better,  or  supe- 
rior; as,  a  foot  is  less  than  a  yard;  a  fall  is  worse  than  a  stumble. 


tiian  Conjunctions  240 

Should  possibilities  be  worse  to  bear  than  certainties  ? 

Dickens  Old  Curiosity  Shop  ch.  15,  p.  169. 

Spend  one  penny  less  than  thy  clear  gain. 
B.  Franklin  Life  and  Essays,  To  Make  Money  Plenty  p.  132. 

Taken  as  a  whole  the  black  race  represents  a  lower,  a  more 
primitive  state  of  society  than  the  yellow  race. 

E.  A.  Allen  Hist.  Civilization  vol.  ii,  ch.  1,  p.  76. 

(b)  Not  merely  superiority  but  difference  may  be  denoted  by 

than,  as  in  such  phrases  as  else  than,  other  than.    We  do  not, 

however,  say  different  than,  much  less  different  to,  but  different 

from. 

And  he  said  with  a  smile,  *  Our  ship,  I  wis, 

Shall  be  of  another  form  than  this ! ' 

Longfellow  Building  of  the  Ship  st.  3. 

In  many  occupations  industrial  efficiency  requires  little  else 
than  physical  vigour;  that  is,  muscular  strength,  a  good  con- 
stitution and  energetic  habits.  A.  Marshall  Principles  of  Eco- 
nomics vol.  i,  bk.  iv,  ch.  5,  p.  250. 

The  Talmud  informs  us  that  Noah  had  no  other  light  in  the 
ark  than  that  which  came  from  precious  stones. 

J.  T.  Fields  Underbrush,  Diamonds  p.  215. 

Many  a  preacher  becomes  an  author  who  has  no  other  call  to 
this  vocation  than  the  call  of  an  admiring  congregation  for  a 
volume  of  discourses.    Porter  Books  and  Reading  ch.  20,  p.  327. 

(c)  Preference  is  commonly  expressed  by  rather — than, 
sooner — than,  or  the  like. 

Edward  Strachey  was  .  .  .  a  man  ra^/ier  tacit  f/ian  discursive. 
Carlyle  Reminiscences,  Edward  Irving  p.  175. 

No  sooner  .  .  .  did  he  show  himself  in  Boston,  than  .  .  . 
measures  were  taken  to  arrest  this  cutpurse  of  the  ocean. 

Irving  Traveller,  Kidd  the  Pirate  p.  386. 

(d)  Than  is  often  followed  by  a  substantive  clause  contain- 
ing an  infinitive  or  beginning  with  that,  etc.,  or  by  a  relative 
as  that  or  that  which  with  no  verb  expressed. 

I  had  rather  be  a  doorkeeper  in  the  house  of  my  God  than  to 
dwell  in  the  tents  of  wickedness.  Ps.  Ixxxiv,  10. 


241  Defined  and  Illustrated  tban 

I  had  rather  believe  all  the  fables  in  the  legends  and  the 
Talmud  and  tno  Alcoran,  than  that  this  universal  frame  is 
without  a  mind.  Bacon  Essays,  Of  Atheism. 

(e)  Observe  the  had  rather  in  the  quotations  above  given 
from  the  Bible  and  from  Bacon,  and  compare  the  would  sooner 
of  Guthrie  in  the  quotation  following,  showing  that  either  phrase 
is  supported  by  good  authority,  though  the  had  rather  has  the 
support  of  the  greater  number  of  eminent  writers  of  the  Eliza- 
bethan age. 

I  would  a  thousand  times  sooner  believe,  that  man  made 
himself  what  he  is,  than  that  God  made  him  so. 

Guthrie  Gospel  in  Ezekiel  ser.  iii,  p.  41. 

(/)  The  to  of  the  infinitive  or  the  relative  in  such  construc- 
tion is  often  omitted. 

The  desire  of  the  law  to  effectuate  rather  than  [to]  defeat  a 
contract,  is  wise,  just,  and  beneficial. 

Parsons  Contracts  vol.  ii,  pt.  ii,  ch.  1,  §  3,  p.  18. 

For  there  came  a  wind 
Drowsier  than  [that  which]  blows  o'er  Malwa's  fields  of  sleep. 
Edwin  Arnold  Light  of  Asia  bk.  iv,  st.  25. 

(gr)  Than  is  now  classed  by  lexicographers  and  grammarians 
as  a  conjunction  only,  taking  the  same  case  after  it  as  before,  a 
verb  being  commonly  understood  as  filling  out  the  clause  after 
than ;  as,  he  is  older  than  I  [am] ;  he  likes  her  better  than 
[he  likes]  me.  This  rule  has  the  merit  of  absolute  perspicuity, 
for  **  he  likes  her  better  than  I "  would  be  understood  as  mean- 
ing ''better  than  I  [like  her],"  while  "he  likes  her  better  than 
me"  would  mean  "better  than  [he  likes]  me";  the  nominative 
case  after  than  being  always  construed  as  the  subject,  and  the 
objective  as  the  object  of  a  verb  understood. 

''Than  has  the  same  case  (usually  the  nominative)  after  it  as  it 
has  before  it,  in  accordance  with  the  syntactical  rule  that  '  con- 
junctions connect  .  .  .  the  same  cases  of  nouns  and  pronouns ' : 
as,  he  is  taller  than  I  (am);  I  am  richer  than  he  (is);  'thrice 
fairer  than  (I)  myself  (am)'  {Shak.,  Venus  and  Adonis,  1,  7); 
they  like  you  better  than  (they  like)  me."    Century  Dictionary. 

16 


that  Conjunctions  242 

{h)  Than  whom :  The  phrase  than  whom  is  an  exception  to 
this  rule,  and  appears  to  be  fixed  in  the  language  as  such. 

Which  when  Beelzebub  perceived,  than  whom, 

Satan  except,  none  higher  sat,  with  grave 

Aspect  he  rose.         Milton  Paradise  Lost  bk.  ii,  1.  299. 

For  this  phrase  it  seems  impossible  to  suggest  a  substitute. 
We  could  not  say  than  who,  and  the  only  alternative  would 
seem  to  be  to  avoid  the  relative  by  changing  the  structure  of 
the  sentence,  which  would  often  be  inconvenient. 

"Than  whom.  A  phrase  objected  to  by  some  grammatical 
critics,  in  such  locutions  as  * '  Cromwell,  than  whom  no  man  was 
better  skilled  in  artifice";  but  shown  to  be  *'a  quite  classic  ex- 
pression." Formerly  than  was  often  but  not  always  used  as  a 
preposition,  and  than  whom  is  probably  a  survival  of  such  usage. 
The  habit  of  putting  a  pronoun  that  ends  a  sentence  in  the  ob- 
jective case  strengthens  the  tendency  to  the  prepositional  em- 
ployment of  than,  and  hence  the  usage  in  such  sentences  as  "He 
is  older  than  me,"  ''you  are  taller  than  him,"  so  common  in 
English  literature  before  the  19th  century.  Nevertheless,  this 
tendency  has  been  resisted  by  grammarians,  and  in  the  19th 
century  such  phraseology  is  considered  bad  English.  '  *  Than 
whom,"  however,  is  generally  accepted  as  permissible — prob- 
ably because  the  sentence  where  it  occurs  can  not  be  mended 
without  reconstruction,  and  it  has  abundant  literary  authority." 

Standard  Dictionary,  Faulty  Diction. 

''How  the  expression,  a  quite  classical  one,  .  .  .  can  be  justi- 
fied grammatically,  except  by  calling  its  than  a  preposition, 
others  may  resolve  at  their  leisure  and  pleasure."  Fitzedward 
Hall  Recent  Exemplifications  of  False  Philology  p.  84.] 

THAT 

That,  from  Anglo-Saxon  thcet,  was  originally  a  demonstrative 
pronoun,  later  used  as  a  relative  pronoun  (see  Relative  Pro- 
nouns) ,  and  also  as  a  conjunction. 

The  conjunction  of  the  subordinate  sentence,  variously  de- 
noting fact,  purpose,  reason,  result,  etc. 

[The  conjunction  that  ...  is  in  English,  in  the  most  com- 
prehensive sense,  the  conjunction  of  the  subordinate  sentence 


243  Defined  and  Illustrated  tbat 

generally,  so  that  it  was  once  attached  to  almost  all  the  con- 
junctions, as  it  still  is  or  may  be  subjoined  to  some. 

Maetzner  English  Grammar  vol.  i,  p.  421.] 

[That  is  used  primarily  to  connect  the  substantive  sentence 
as  a  subordinate  clause  with  its  principal  sentence.  Beginning 
with  the  simple  relation  of  fact  or  matter  of  fact,  it  takes  in  re- 
lations of  purpose,  reason,  consequence,  result,  etc.  .  .  . 

That  as  a  conjunction  retains  much  of  its  force  as  a  demon- 
strative pronoun,  and  was  considered  by  Home  Tooke,  as  it  is 
by  others,  to  be  oftentimes  nothing  else.  Thus  the  sentence, 
**I  am  told  that  you  are  miserable "  may  be  transposed  into, 
"You  are  miserable;  I  am  told  that"       Standard  Dictionary.] 

[Confusion  sometimes  arises  in  our  language  from  the  triple 
meaning  of  'that,'  which,  with  us,  is  a  demonstrative  pronoun, 
a  relative  pronoun,  and  a  conjunction.  It  is  possible  to  use  six 
*  thats '  consecutively  in  the  same  sentence. 

H.  Alford  Plea  for  the  Queen's  English  §  101,  p.  79.] 

[Note. — That  is  a  particle  so  ultimate  and  elementary  that 
its  various  meanings  can  not  be  defined,  but  only  described,  since 
any  other  form  of  words  will  prove  but  an  inadequate  peri- 
phrasis unless  it  employs  (as  is  often  done)  the  very  word  that, 
which  we  wish  to  define,  such  repetition  of  course  making  no 
advance  in  thought,  though  the  explanatory  words  added  may 
have  the  effect  of  emphasizing  or  restricting  the  meaning.  In 
the  following  arrangement  the  only  attempt  is  to  indicate  by 
way  of  explanation  the  chief  uses  of  this  important  conjunction.] 

1.  Introducing  a  fact  in  subordinate  relation  to  the  principal 
statement :  the  following  fact,  observation,  statement,  etc. ; 
namely ;  as  a  fact ;  as,  I  am  told  that  you  are  ill ;  it  appears  that 
he  did  not  know ;  it  is  observed  that  great  strength  and  good 
nature  commonly  go  together. 

One  of  these  self-evident,  necessary  truths  is  that  every 
change  or  new  existence  requires  a  cause. 

MiVART  Nature  and  Thought  ch.  5,  p.  180. 

It  is  a  trite  remark,  that,  having  the  choicest  tools,  an  unskil- 
ful artisan  will  botch  his  work.  Spencer  Education  p.  115. 


that  Conjunctions  244 

The  great  queen  [Elizabeth]  .  .  .  was  always  too  sagacious 
to  doubt  that  the  Dutch  cause  was  her  own — however  disposed 
she  might  be  to  browbeat  the  Dutchmen. 

Motley  United  Netherlands  vol.  iv,  ch.  41,  p.  137. 

It  does  not  follow  that  I  wisKto  be  pickled  in  brine  because  I 
like  a  salt-water  plunge  at  Nahant. 

Holmes  Autocrat  ch.  1,  p.  10. 

Nobody  doubts  now,  or  has  doubted  since  the  abolition  of 
slavery,  that  the  purchase  of  Louisiana  was  an  act  of  sound 
statesmanship.      Sydney  H.  Gay  James  Madison  ch.  16,  p.  257. 

To  this  general  rule,  that  the  burden  of  proof  is  on  the  party 
holding  the  affirmative,  there  are  some  exceptions. 

Greenleaf  On  Evidence  vol.  i,  pt.  ii,  ch.  3,  p.  105. 

Let  us  have  faith  that  right  makes  might,  and  in  that  faith 
let  us,  to  the  end,  dare  to  do  our  duty  as  we  understand  it. 

Abraham  Lincoln  Addi^ess  Feb.  21,  1859. 

2.  Referring  to  or  indicating  time :  at  which  time ;  when ;  as, 
it  is  time  that  we  were  starting ;  this  is  the  day  that  the  note 
falls  due. 

'Twas  but  a  moment  that  he  stood. 
Then  sped  as  if  by  death  pursued. 

Byron  The  Giaour  st.  8. 

The  February  day  that  I  stood  on  the  Frankfort  bridge  the 
Main  was  sheeted  with  ice.    Hosmer  German  Lit.  ch.  12,  p.  334. 

3.  Denoting  purpose,  object,  or  tendency:  having  the  follow- 
ing intention,  aim,  or  tendency;  for  the  following  purpose;  to 
the  following  effect ;  as,  I  send  you  to  school  that  you  may  learn. 

Love  was  given,  .  .  .  That  self  might  be  annulled. 

Wordsworth  Laodamia  st.  22. 

The  law  requires  that  our  national  cruisers  shall  be  called 
after  cities.  Eliz.  B.  Custer  Following  the  Guidon  p.  4. 

[In  the  following  quotation  that  is  omitted,  as  often  else- 
where : 

Why,  sir,  if  I  thought  [thaf]  you  all  meant  the  correct  thing 
—hem  1  Cyrus  Townsend  Brady  Tittlebat  Titmouse  ch.  3,  p.  29.] 


245  Defined  and  Illustrated  that 

4.  Denoting  or  introducing  a  reason:  inasmuch  as;  as;  be- 
cause; since;  as,  it  is  not  that  I  wish  this,  but  that  I  am  forced 
to  it. 

The  foreknowledge  of  God  has  then  no  influence  upon  either 
the  freedom  or  the  certainty  of  actions,  for  this  plain  reason, 
that  it  is  knowledge,  and  not  influence. 

R.  Watson  Institutes  pt.  ii,  ch.  4,  p.  380. 

Shall  I  suspect  myself  of  being  ashamed  that  I  am  on  such 
distant  terms  with  my  own  country  ? 

Edgar  F awcett  Oentleman  of  Leisure  ch.  4,  p.  52. 

5.  Introducing  a  result,  consequence,  or  effect,  often  as  a 
correlative  of  such  or  so  (see  Correlative  Conjunctions)  ;  as, 
what  have  I  done  that  you  desert  me  ? 

Then  get  thee  gone  and  dig  my  grave  thyself, 
And  bid  the  merry  bells  ring  to  thine  ear 
That  thou  art  crowned,  not  that  I  am  dead. 

Shakespeare  2  K.  Henry  IV.  act  iv,  sc.  4, 1.  243. 

He  was  so  attentive  in  the  choice  of  the  passages  in  which 
words  were  authorised,  that  one  may  read  page  after  page  of  his 
Dictionary  with  improvement  and  pleasure. 

BoswELL  Johnson,  1743  vol.  i,  p.  129. 

Man  cannot  so  far  know  the  connection  of  causes  and  events 
as  that  he  may  venture  to  do  wrong  in  order  to  do  right. 

Johnson  Rasselas  ch.  34,  p.  159. 

It  is  the  uneven  allotment  of  nature  that  the  male  bird  alone 
has  the  tuft.  George  Eliot  Deronda  vol.  i,  ch.  9,  p.  92. 

Cellulose  has  the  property  of  swelling  when  wet  to  such  an 
extent  that  if  perforated  by  a  projectile  it  will  rapidly  close  the 
aperture  by  its  own  action  until  water-tight. 

New-York  Times  Nov.  28,  1890,  p.  4,  col.  4. 

It  was  almost  impossible  that  Sokrates  could  fail  to  discover 
the  yerbalism  in  which  the  Eleatic  philosophers  often  involved 
themselves.       G.  W.  Cox  Gen.  Hist.  Greece  loik.  iv,  ch.  2,  p.  521. 

6.  Introducing  an  expression  of  wish,  hope,  aspiration,  or  re- 
gret, and  usually  preceded  by  0  or  Oh,  0  that  [Oh  that]  being 
equivalent  to  would  that ;  as,  0  that  morning  would  come  1 


tiien  Conjunctions  246 

O  that  Ishmael  might  live  before  thee  1  Gen.  xvii,  18 

Oh  tliat  I  might  have  my  request  1  Job  vi,  8. 

0  that  my  ways  were  directed  to  keep  thy  statutes  I 

Ps.  cxix,  6. 

O  that  this  too  too  solid  flesh  would  melt,  i 

Thaw,  and  resolve  itself  into  a  dew ! 

Shakespeare  Hamlet  act  i,  sc.  2,  1. 129, 

7.  In  elliptical  construction,  expressing  surprise,  indignation, 
or  other  strong  feeling,  which  naturally  sweeps  away  the  affirm- 
ative clause  on  which  the  conjunction  depends;  as,  that  he 
should  fail  me  in  this  crisis!  i.  e.  (I  am  amazed,  distressed,  or 
the  like)  that  he  should,  etc. 

[Note. — 0,  that  is  often  used  in  such  phrase,  but  with  a  dif- 
ferent meaning  from  the  O  that  of  def .  6. 

That  it  should  come  to  this  I 
But  two  months  dead ;  nay,  not  so  much,  not  two ! 

Shakespeare  Hamlet  act  i,  sc.  2,  1. 137. 

O,  that  deceit  should  dwell 
In  such  a  gorgeous  palace  I 
Shakespeare  Romeo  and  Juliet  act  iii,  sc.  2,  1.  84.] 

8.  Used  at  times,  though  not  so  often  as  formerly,  after  a 
preposition,  adverb,  or  conjunction,  so  that  the  whole  expression 
has  the  effect  of  a  compound  conjunction ;  as,  after  that  he  had 
spoken,  he  departed ;  I  do  not  doubt  hut  that  it  is  true. 

1  was  sure  that  he  could  not  live  after  that  he  was  fallen. 

2  Sam.  i,  10. 
I  neither  can  nor  will  deny  but  that  1  know  them. 
Shakespeare  AlFs  Well  That  Ends  Well  act  v,  sc.  3,  1. 167. 

THEX 

Then,  from  Anglo-Saxon  thcenne,  is  primarily  an  adverb  of 
time,  becoming  a  conjunction  by  transference  from  the  idea  of 
succession  in  time  to  that  of  succession  in  thought. 

Denoting  a  reason  or  consequence :  for  that  reason ;  as  a  con- 
sequence or  result;  therefore;  in  that  case;  as,  "You  have  done 


247  Defined  and  Illustrated  therefore 

the  work  ?    Then  make  your  report " ;  if  this  is  the  fact,  then  our 
coarse  is  clear. 

If  it  were  done  when  'tis  done,  then  'twere  well 
It  were  done  quickly. 

Shakespeare  Macbeth  act  i,  sc.  7, 1. 1. 

And  dar'st  thou  then 
To  beard  the  lion  in  his  den, 
The  Douglas  in  his  hall  ? 

Scott  Marmion  can.  6,  st.  14. 

Thy  work  is  to  hew  down.    In  God's  name  then 

Put  nerve  into  thy  task.  Whittier  To  Rouge  1.  3. 

Is  reason  then  an  affair  of  sex  ?  No !  But  women  are  com- 
monly in  a  state  of  dependence,  and  are  not  likely  to  exercise  their 
reason  with  freedom.      Coleridge  Works,  Friend  vol.  ii,  p.  181. 

Dear,  tell  them,  that  if  eyes  were  made  for  seeing. 
Then  beauty  is  its  own  excuse  for  being. 

Emerson  The  Rhodora  1. 12 

Then  on !  then  on !  where  duty  leads, 
My  course  be  onward  still. 

Heber  If  Thou  Wert  by  My  Side  st.  7. 

I  slept  and  dreamed  that  life  was  Beauty; 
I  woke,  and  found  that  life  was  Duty :  — 
Was  thy  dream  then  a  shadowy  lie  ? 

Ellen  Sturgis  Hooper  Duty. 

[Note. — A  sentence  in  which  then  might  be  used  sometimes 
omits  the  connective,  and  gains  force  by  its  very  abruptness. 

The  twilight  of  dubiety  never  falls  upon  him  [a  Scotchman] . 
Is  he  orthodox — he  has  no  doubts.  Is  he  an  infidel— he  has 
none  either.  Lamb  Elia,  Imperfect  Sympathies  p.  89. 

Each  dash  here  might  be  replaced  by  then,  but  the  expression 
would  be  weaker.] 

THEREFORE 

Therefore  is  a  com]x>und  of  there  2^6.  fore  ox  for. 

Expressing  a  consequence  and  pointing  to  a  preceding  suffi- 
cient cause :  for  this  or  that  reason ;  on  that  ground  or  account 
consequently. 


tbongii  Conjunctions  248 

[Note. — Therefore  has  the  distinction  of  being  able  to  con- 
nect the  thought  of  one  sentence  with  that  of  another  across  a 
period,  referring  back  to  something  previously  stated  even  when 
that  is  embodied  in  a  completed  sentence,  or  in  more  than  one 
such  sentence  preceding,  thus  often  connecting  in  thought  state- 
ments that  are  grammatically  separate.  Therefore  is  the  con- 
junction especially  used  in  formal  and  elaborate  reasoning,  and 
commonly  introduces  the  conclusion  of  a  syllogism  or  of  a  math- 
ematical demonstration ;  as,  A  is  equal  to  B.  B  is  equal  to  C. 
Therefore  A  is  equal  to  C] 

Therefore,  I  pray  you,  lead  me  to  the  caskets, 
To  try  my  fortune. 

Shakespeare  Merchant  of  Venice  act  ii,  sc.  1,  1.  24. 

The  law  wherel^y  He  worketh  is  eternal,  and  therefore  can 
have  no  show  or  colour  of  mutability. 

Hooker  Ecclesiastical  Polity  bk.  i,  p.  64. 

And  therefore  I  do  declare  unto  you  that  I  do  dissolve  this 
Parliament.  Cromwell  Letters  and  Speeches  p.  239. 

No  man  will  take  counsel,  but  every  man  will  take  money: 
therefore  money  is  better  than  counsel. 

Swift  Works,  Thoughts  p.  520. 

Friends  are  often  chosen  for  similitude  of  manners,  and 
therefore  each  palliates  the  other's  failings  because  they  are  his 
own.  S.  Johnson  Rambler  June  23, 1750. 

Envy  ...  is  therefore  the  grudging  sense  of  relative  inferi- 
ority. Martineau  Types  of  Ethical  Theory  vol.  ii,  p.  183. 

Chartism  means  the  bitter  discontent  grown  fierce  and  mad, 
the  wrong  condition  therefore  or  the  wrong  disposition,  of  the 
Working  Classes  of  England.  Carlyle  Chartism  ch.  1,  p.  2. 

We  seem  authorized  to  conclude,  therefore,  that  the  bowlders 
have  been  transported  generally  from  the  north. 

WiNCHELL  Walks  and  Talks  ch.  2,  p.  18. 

THOUGH 

Though,  from  Anglo-Saxon  theah,  is  simply  and  only  a  con- 
junction, unless  we  except  a  single  use  classed  by  some  lexicog 
raphers  as  adverbial. 


249  Defined  and  Illustrated  tbongli 

Though  is  preeminently  the  particle  of  concession.  Although 
shares  with  it  this  office. 

1,  Introducing  a  clause  expressing  an  actual  fact:  in  spite  of 
the  fact  that ;  notwithstanding ;  as,  the  road  is  passable,  though 
it  has  been  raining  hard. 

Though  I  bestow  all  my  goods  to  feed  the  poor  .  .  .  and  have 
not  charity,  it  profiteth  me  nothing.  1  Cor.  xiii,  3. 

But  to  my  mind,  though  I  am  native  here, 

And  to  the  manner  bom,  it  is  a  custom 

More  honoured  in  the  breach  than  the  observance. 

Shakespeare  Hamlet  act  1,  sc.  4,  1.  15. 

Though  I  look  old,  yet  I  am  strong  and  lusty ; 
For  in  my  youth  I  never  did  apply 
Hot  and  rebellious  liquors  in  my  blood. 

Shakespeare  As  You  Like  It  act  ii,  sc.  3, 1.  47. 

I  on  the  other  side 
Us'd  no  ambition  to  commend  my  deeds  ; 
The  deeds  themselves,  though  mute,  spoke  loud  the  doer. 

Milton  Samson  Agonistes  1.  246. 

And  with  perpetual  inroads  to  alarm. 
Though  inaccessible,  his  fatal  throne. 

Milton  Paradise  Lost  bk.  ii,  1.  104. 

Though  a  young  man,  I  have  ferreted  out  evidence,  got  up 
cases,  and  seen  lots  of  life.       Dickens  Bleak  House  ch.  9,  p.  162. 

Fear  not,  though  I  have  woven  countless  sAares, 
And  tangled  countless  hearts. 
Bickersteth  Yesterday,  To-day,  and  For  Ever  bk.  vii,  1.  452. 

Nature  is  always  consistent,  though  she  feigns  to  contravene 
her  own  laws.        Emerson  Essays,  Nature  in  first  series,  p.  148. 

2.  Introducing  a  supposition  or  possibility:  conceding  that ; 
granting  that;  admitting  that;  even  on  the  supposition  that; 
even  if;  as,  let  justice  be  done,  though  the  heavens  fall. 

m  cross  it  though  it  blast  me. 

Shakespeare  Hamlet  act  1,  sc.  1, 1.  127. 


though  Conjunctions  250 

Thrice  is  he  arm'd  that  hath  his  quarrel  just, 
And  he  but  naked,  though  lock'd  up  in  steel, 
Whose  conscience  with  injustice  is  corrupted. 

Shakespeare  ^  K.  Henry  VL  act  iii,  sc.  2,  1.  232. 

For  this  was  all  thy  care. 
To  stand  approved  in  sight  of  God,  though  worlds 
Judged  thee  perverse.     Milton  Paradise  Lost  bk.  vi,  1.  36. 

For  blessings  ever  wait  on  virtuous  deeds. 
And  though  a  late,  a  sure  reward  succeeds. 

CONGREVE  The  Mourning  Bride  act  v,  sc.  3. 

The  philosopher  works  upon  the  man  in  isolation,  though  he 
may  for  convenience  assemble  his  pupils  in  classes. 

J.  R.  Seeley  Ecce  Homo  pt.  i,  ch.  9,  p.  107. 

Speak  what  you  think  now  in  hard  words,  and  to-morrow 
speak  what  to-morrow  thinks  in  hard  words  again,  though  it 
contradict  everything  you  said  to-day. 

Emerson  Essays,  Self -Reliance  in  first  series,  p.  52. 

3.  Introducing  a  modification  or  limitation  as  an  after- 
thought :  and  yet ;  still ;  however ;  except  that ;  as,  the  weather 
is  fine,  though  [it  must  be  admitted  to  be]  somewhat  warm 

[Note. — Though  in  this  sense  is  sometimes  used  alone  at  the 
end  of  a  clause,  when  it  is  by  some  considered  as  an  adverb. 
But  the  sentence  above  given  would  come  into  this  form  by 
simple  transposition  of  words  without  change  of  meaning ;  as, 
the  weather  is  fine  —  somewhat  warm  though.  This  would  seem 
to  show  such  usage  to  be  truly  conjunctive. 

Your  hands,  than  mine,  are  quicker  for  a  fray ; 
My  legs  are  longer  though,  to  run  away. 
Shakespeare  Midsummer- NighV s  Dream  act  iii,  sc.  2.] 

For  some  must  follow,  and  some  command. 
Though  all  are  made  of  clay  I 

Longfellow  Keramos  1.  6. 

But  she  loved  Enoch ;  though  she  knew  it  not, 
And  would  if  ask'd  deny  it. 

Tennyson  Enoch  Arden  st.  4 


251  Defined  and  Illustrated  tiu 

I  am  pretty  well,  and  take  exercise  regularly,  though,  as  Par- 
son Adams  says,  it  must  be  of  the  vehicular  kind. 

Scott  in  Lockhart's  Walter  Scott  vol.  ii,  ch.  46,  p.  720. 

We  have  two  or  three  flowering  air-plants  in  the  Southern 
States,  though  they  are  not  showy  ones. 

"  Asa  Gray  Field-Book  of  Botany  lesson  v,  p.  84. 

In  some  of  the  crabs  the  footstalk  of  the  eye  remains,  though 
the  eye  is  gone.  Spencer  Biology  vol.  i,  pt.  ii,  p.  247. 

The  decrees  of  destiny  according  to  the  Homeric  notion,  can 
be  put  off  by  human  agency,  though  they  can  never  be  finally 
averted.  Anthon  Homer's  Iliad  bk.  ii,  p.  215,  note. 

[As  though :  As  is  often  joined  with  though,  the  entire  phrase 
signifying  as  if. 

They  brought  him  to  the  Watergate,    Hard  bound  with  hempen 

span. 
As  though  they  held  a  lion  there,    And  not  a  fenceless  man. 

Aytoun  Execution  of  Montrose  st.  4. 

His  face  beamed  as  though  his  individual  hand  was  striking 
slavery  dead.  Lady  Duffus  Hardy  Through  Cities  and  Prai- 
rie Lands  ch.  2,  p.  18. 

It  was  indeed  a  grand  portal,  that  same  Gap,  not  fully  fifty 
feet  in  width,  and  more  than  nine  hundred  in  height  —  a  mere 
fissure,  in  fact,  as  complete  as  though  made  by  the  stroke  of  a 
giant's  scimitar.  Lever  Luttrell  of  Arran  ch.  12,  p.  47.] 

TILL.  (UWriL.) 

For  the  etymology  of  these  words,  see  till  under  Prepositions. 

Till  as  a  conjunction  denotes  expectancy  or  continuance  to 
some  definite  point  of  time :  up  to  the  period  when ;  up  to  such 
time  as ;  till  (prep. )  the  time  when ;  as,  wait  till  I  return. 

[Until  is  used  interchangeably  with  till,  with  no  appreciable 
difference  of  meaning.] 

He  shall  not  fail  nor  be  discouraged,  till  he  have  set  judgment 
in  the  earth.  Isa.  xlii,  4. 


till  Conjunctions  252 

So  may'st  thou  live,  till  like  ripe  fruit  thou  drop 
Into  thy  mother's  lap,  or  be  with  ease 
Gather'd,  not  harshly  pluck'd,  for  death  mature. 

Milton  Paradise  Lost  bk.  xi,  1.  535. 

Like  birds,  whose  beauties  languish  half  concealed, 
Till,  mounted  on  the  wing,  their  glossy  plumes 
Expanded,  shine  with  azure,  green  and  gold ; 
How  blessings  brighten  as  they  take  their  flight. 

Young  Night  Thoughts,  Night  ii  1.  589. 

Scientific  results  grow  out  of  facts,  but  not  till  they  have  been 
fertilized  by  thought.      Agassiz  Methods  of  Study  eh.  13,  p.  202. 

The  shot  of  the  assassin  cut  short  their  [Lincoln's  and  Gar- 
field's] martyr  lives,  but  not  until  their  work  was  done. 

Farrar  Lectures,  Thoughts  on  Am.  p.  85. 

Until  the  Indian  is  a  citizen,  subject  to  the  same  privileges 

and  penalties  as  are  other  men  in  this  country,  we  may  expect  war. 

G.  T.  Kercheval  in  North  American  Review  Feb.,  1891,  p.  253. 

Climate,  sky,  soil,  occupation,  physical  environment,  have 
acted  upon  generation  after  generation  of  Englishmen  until  a 
distinct  type  of  man  has  been  produced. 

H.  W.  Mabie  Short  Studies  in  Lit,  ch.  10,  p.  49. 

He  waited  a  few  minutes,  until  the  wine  had  comforted  his 
epigastrium.  Holmes  Guardian  Angel  p.  296. 

She  is  not  fair  to  outward  view 

As  many  maidens  be ; 
Her  loveliness  I  never  knew 

Until  she  smiled  on  me : 
Oh !  then  I  saw  her  eye  was  bright 
A  well  of  love,  a  spring  of  light. 

Hartley  Coleridge  Song. 

There  the  thrushes 
Sing  till  latest  sunlight  flushes 
In  the  west. 

Christina  G.  Rossetti  Sound  Sleep  st.  2. 

Till  their  own  dreams  at  length  deceive  'em, 
And  oft  repeating,  they  believe  'em. 

Prior  Alma  oan.  iii,  1. 13. 


253  Defined  and  Illustrated  unless 

Unless,  formerly  written  onlesse,  is  derived  from  on  pins  less, 
and  is  analogous  in  meaning  to  the  phrase  at  least.    Compare 

LEST. 

Like  the  conjunction  lest,  including  an  implied  negative :  if 
it  be  not  a  fact  that ;  in  the  event  that  .  .  .  not ;  in  case  .  .  . 
not;  supposing  that  .  .  .  not;  if  .  .  .  not;  as,  we  shall  go  un- 
less it  rains ;  I  shall  believe  it  unless  you  can  prove  the  contrary. 

[Note. — By  the  omission  of  an  implied  verb,  unless  often  ap- 
proaches the  meaning  of  except;  as,  he  never  stammers,  unless 
[it  be]  when  he  is  angry. 

Unless  the  old  adage  must  be  verified, 

That  beggars  mounted,  run  their  horse  to  death. 

Shakespeare  S  K.  Henry  VI.  act  i,  sc.  4, 1.  126. 

Here  nothing  breeds, 

Unless  the  nightly  owl,  or  fatal  raven. 

Shakespeare  Titus  Andronicus  act  ii,  sc.  3,  1.  97.  ] 

Grievances  cannot  be  redressed  unless  they  are  known ;  and 
they  cannot  be  known  but  through  complaints  and  petitions. 

B.  Franklin  Autobiography  vol.  ii,  ch.  7,  p.  198. 

No  man  securely  rejoiceth,  unless  he  have  within  him  the  tes- 
timony of  a  good  conscience. 

Thomas  a  Kempis  Imitation  of  Christ  bk.  i,  ch.  20,  p.  49. 

Burke  rarely  shows  all  his  powers  unless  where  he  is  in  a 
passion.  Coleridge  Table  Talk  Jan.  4,  1823. 

The  horse  .  .  .  felt  that  his  rider  was  in  a  great  stew  of  ter- 
ror ;  and  he  would  not  have  been  a  horse,  unless  he  shared  it. 

Blackmore  Christowell  vol.  ii,  ch.  25,  p.  266. 

The  range  of  a  bee,  unless  urged  by  hunger,  is  about  two 
miles.       N.  Eames  in  American  Agriculturist  June,  1891,  p.  331. 

A  body  will  never  change  its  place  unless  moved,  and  if  once 
started  will  move  forever  unless  stopped. 

J.  D.  Steele  Natural  Philosophy  ch.  1,  p.  26. 

IJJVTIL 

See  till. 


wiien  Conjunctions  254 

See  WHEN  niider  Adverbs.  The  use  of  when  as  a  conjunction 
is  an  extension  of  its  use  as  an  interrogative  adverb  in  a  depend- 
ent sentence,  and  the  word  is  by  some  lexicographers  classed 
only  as  an  adverb  with  conjunctive  uses.  Since,  however,  when 
is  paralleled  with  then,  it  would  seem  reasonable  to  treat  it,  like 
then,  as  a  true  conjunction. 

1.  Of  time:  at  which  or  what  time;  as,  I  slept  till  daylight; 
when  I  awoke  with  a  start. 

I  will  go  wash; 
And  when  my  face  is  fair,  you  shall  perceive 
Whether  I  blush  or  no. 

Shakespeare  Coriolanus  act  i,  sc.  9, 1.  68. 

But,  thou  know'st  this, 
'Tis  time  ^  to  fear  when  tyr^^nts  seem  to  kiss. 

Shakespeare  Pericles  act  i,  sc.  2, 1.  78. 

Sweet  is  the  trance,  the  tremor  sweet, 
When  all  we  love  is  all  our  own. 

Campbell  Stanzas  to  Painting  st.  4. 

In  books  lies  the  soul  of  the  whole  Past  Time ;  the  articulate 
audible  voice  of  the  Past,  when  the  body  and  material  substance 
of  it  has  altogether  vanished  like  a  dream.  Carlyle  Heroes 
and  Hero  Worship,  The  Hero  as  a  Man  of  Letters. 

Women  and  winds  are  only  understood  when  fairly  in  motion. 

Cooper  Water-Witch  ch.  6,  p.  56. 

When  the  sun  of  that  day  went  down,  the  event  of  Independ- 
ence was  no  longer  doubtful. 

Webster  Works,  Bunker  Hill  Monument  in  vol.  i,  p.  91. 

The  pick,  stone-saw,  wedge,  chisel,  and  other  tools  were  al- 
ready in  use  when  the  pyramids  were  built. 

Rawlinson  Herodotus  vol.  ii,  bk.  ii,  p.  198,  note  4 

We  crave  the  astonishing,  the  exciting,  the  far  away,  and  do 
not  know  the  highways  of  the  gods  when  we  see  them. 

Burroughs  Winter  Sunshine  subject  ii,  p.  36. 

The  only  revolutions  which  have  happened  in  this  land  [Eng 
land]  have  been  when  Heaven  was  the  only  court  of  appeal. 

Erskine  Speeches,  Council  of  Madras  in  vol.  iv,  p.  38 


255  Defined  and  Illustrated  wiien 

O  thrush,  your  song  is  passing  sweet. 
But  never  a  song  that  you  have  sung 

Is  half  so  sweet  as  thrushes  sang 

When  my  dear  love  and  I  were  young. 

Wm.  Morris  Other  Days. 

When  hands  clasped  hands,  and  lips  to  lips  were  pressed. 
And  the  heart's  secret  was  at  once  confessed. 

Abraham  Coles  Man,  the  Microcosm  p.  25. 

2.  Of  connection  in  thought,  introducing  a  clause  expressing 
condition  or  contrariety:  at  the  very  time  that;  although; 
whereas ;  seeing  that ;  on  condition  that ;  provided ;  while  on  the 
contrary ;  as,  do  not  ask  for  charity  when  you  might  work ;  he 
remained  passive  when  every  thing  called  for  action. 

When  they  will  not  give  a  doit  to  relieve  a  lame  beggar,  they 
will  lay  out  ten  to  see  a  dead  Indian. 

Shakespeare  Tempest  act  ii,  sc.  2, 1.  32. 

Who  shall  decide  when  doctors  disagree. 

And  soundest  casuists  doubt,  like  you  and  me  ? 

Pope  Moral  Essays  ep.  iii. 

By  a  Fallacy  is  commonly  understood,  any  unsound  mode  of 
arguing,  which  appears  to  demand  our  conviction,  and  to  be  de- 
cisive of  the  question  in  hand,  when  in  fairness  it  is  not. 

Whately  Logic  bk.  iii,  intro.,  p.  143. 

She  was  ready  to  sacrifice  holocausts  of  feelings,  when  the 
feelings  were  other  people's. 

H.  James,  Jr.  Tragic  Muse  vol.  i,  ch.  19,  p.  374. 

How  it  happens  that  we  see  things  right  side  up  when  the 
picture  that  is  formed  in  the  eye  by  which  we  see  them  is  up- 
side down,  is  a  mystery.  Jacob  Abbott  Light  ch.  27,  p.  253. 

Distinctions 
When — while :  When  refers  to  a  point  of  time,  while  to  con- 
tinuous duration.     Used  of  logical  connection  by  contrast  or 
antithesis,  it  will  be  found  that  when  is,  as  a  rule,  more  sharply 
adversative    than  while.     While  is  always  concessive,  giving 


wlience  CONJUNCTIONS  256 

some  consideration  to  the  contrasted  thought ;  as,  "  While  I  am 
opposed  to  such  action  on  general  principles,  I  am  willing  to 
make  an  exception  in  this  case,"  while  having  nearly  the  force 
of  although.  The  use  of  when  would  make  the  opposition  the 
controlling  factor;  as,  "  When  I  am  opposed  to  such  action  on 
general  principles,  how  can  I  make  this  case  an  exception  ? "  It 
will  be  seen  that  when  as  compared  with  while  implies  a  more 
irreconcilable  contrast. 

See  WHENCE  under  Adverbs. 

Whence  has  conjunctive  use  as  signifying: 

1,  From  what  or  which  place,  origin,  or  source;  as,  we  knew 
not  whence  he  came,. 

Childe  Harold  was  he  hight :  —  but  whence  his  name 
And  lineage  long,  it  suits  me  not  to  say. 

Byron  Childe  Harold  can.  1,  st.  3. 

And,  when  a  damp 
Fell  round  the  path  of  Milton,  in  his  hand 
The  Thing  became  a  trumpet,  whence  he  blew 
Soul-animating  strains  —  alas,  too  few ! 

Wordsworth  Scorn  Not  the  Sonnet  1. 13. 

Leave  to  the  nightingale  her  shady  wood ; 

A  privacy  of  glorious  light  is  thine : 
Whence  thou  dost  pour  upon  the  world  a  flood 

Of  harmony,  with  instinct  more  divine ; 
Type  of  the  wise,  who  soar,  but  never  roam  — 
True  to  the  kindred  points  of  Heaven  and  Home ! 

Wordsworth  I'o  a  Skylark  st.  3. 

Even  a  lowly  cottage  whence  we  see, 

Stretch'd  wide  and  wild  the  waste  enormous  marsh. 

Tennyson  Ode  to  Memory  st.  5. 

2.  From  what  or  which  cause ;  for  which  reason ;  wherefore ; 
therefore ;  as,  this  is  credibly  related,  whence  I  conclude  that  it 
is  true. 


257  Defined  and  Illustrated  where 

WHERE 

Where,  from  Anglo-Saxon  hwcer,  from  hivd,  who,  primarily  an 
interrogative  adverb,  is  used  like  when  with  conjunctive  force,  in 
which  case  it  is  variously  treated  as  an  adverb  used  conjunctively 
and  as  a  true  conjunction.  It  accords  with  the  plan  of  this 
book  to  treat  this  word  as  a  conjunction  like  when,  whence,  etc. 
Compare  where  under  Relative  or  Conjunctive  Adverbs. 

I.  Of  place : 

1.  At  or  in  which  or  what  place;  at  the  place  in  which; 
wherever ;  as,  you  are  likely  to  find  it  where  you  left  it. 

See  where  she  comes,  apparell'd  like  the  spring. 

Shakespeare  Pericles  act  i,  sc.  1,  1.  12. 

The  ribbed  sand  is  full  of  hollow  gulfs, 
Where  monsters  from  the  waters  come  and  lie. 

R.  H.  Stoddard  The  Witch's  Whelp  st.  1. 

Where  deep  and  misty  shadows  float 
In  forest's  depths  is  heard  thy  note. 
Like  a  lost  spirit,  earthbound  still. 
Art  thou,  mysterious  whip-poor-will. 

Marie  Le  Baron  The  Whip-Poor-Will. 

Hast  thou  not  glimpses,  in  the  twilight  here, 
Of  mountains  where  immortal  mom  prevails  ? 

Bryant  Return  of  Youth  st.  5. 

It  seem'd  a  place  ivhere  Gholes  might  come. 

Moore  Lalla  Rookh,  Fire-Worshippers  pt.  ii,  st.  10. 

The  house  where  Shakspeare  was  bom  ...  is  a  small,  mean- 
looking  edifice  of  wood  and  plaster,  a  true  nestling-place  of 
genius.  Irving  Sketch  Book,  Str  at  ford-on- Avon  p.  318. 

The  chamber  where  the  good  man  meets  his  fate. 

Yojj^a  Night  Thcmghtsuyl.  ^%1. 

Alas!  how  little  can  a  moment  show 

Of  an  eye  where  feeling  plays 

In  ten  thousand  dewy  rays ; 
A  face  o'er  which  a  thousand  shadows  go ! 

Wordsworth  The  Triad. 


where  CONJUNCTIONS  25  § 


2.  To  which  or  what  place ;  to  a  place  in  which ;  whither ;  as, 
no  one  knows  where  he  went. 

Ke  paused,  and  led  where  Donglas  stood, 
And  with  stem  eye  the  pageant  view'd. 

Scott  Marmion  can  5,  st.  14. 

Answer  me,  burning  stars  of  night !     Where  is  the  spirit  gone  ? 

Felicia  D.  Hemans  Invocation  st.  1. 

II.  Metaphorically,  of  the  course  of  events,  situation  of 
aiJairs,  processes  of  thought,  etc.  -. 

1,  In  which  or  what  event,  situation,  or  set  of  circumstances; 

in  which  case ;  according  to  which  fact,  rule,  arrangement,  etc. ; 

as,  to  seek  happiness  in  selfish  enjoyment,  where  it  can  never  be 

found. 

The  azure  gloom 
Of  an  Italian  night,  where  the  deep  skies  assume 
Hues  which  have  words,  and  speak  to  ye  of  heaven. 

Byron  Childe  Harold  can.  4,  st.  128. 

With  silence  only  as  their  benediction, 

God's  angels  come 
Where  in  the  shadow  of  a  great  affliction, 

The  soul  sits  dumb ! 
Whittier  To  my  Friend  on  the  Death  of  his  Sister. 

The  dews  of  blessing  heaviest  fall    Where  care  falls  too. 

Jean  Ingelow  The  Letter  L  pt.  i,  st.  49. 

Active  fortitude  is  demanded  where  evils  are  to  be  encoun- 
tered and  overcome.  It  comprehends  resolution  or  constancy, 
and  intrepidity  or  courage.  .  .  .  Passive  fortitude  is  demanded 
where  evils  are  to  be  met  and  endured  [and  includes]  ...  pa- 
tience, .  ,  .  humility,  .  .  .  meekness. 

D.  S.  Gregory  Christian  Ethics  pt.  ii,  div.  1,  oh.  8,  p.  214. 

There  is  a  mode  of  letting  lands,  not  unusual  in  the  country, 
where  the  tenant  is  to  cultivate  them,  and  share  the  crops  with 
his  landlord. 

E.  Washburn  Am.  Law  ofEecU  Property  vol.  i,  p.  384. 

Where  none  admire,  'tis  useless  to  excel ; 
Where  none  are  beaux,  'tis  vain  to  be  a  belle. 
Lord  Lyttleton  Soliloquy  of  a  Beauty  in  the  Country  1. 11. 


259  Defined  and  Illustrated  whereas 

There  is  a  silence  where  hath  been  no  sound. 
There  is  a  silence  where  no  sound  may  be. 

Hood  Sonnet.  Silence  1.  1 
2.  To  which  or  what  situation,  end,  or  conclusion;  whither, 
as,  observe  where  this  reasoning  will  lead  us. 

You  have  the  Pyrrhic  dance  as  yet, 
Where  is  the  Pyrrhic  phalanx  gone  ? 

Of  two  such  lessons,  why  forget 
The  nobler  and  the  manlier  one  ? 

Byron  Don  Juan  can  iii,  st.  86,  1.  10. 

[Note. — Where  was  formerly  at  some  times  used  in  the  sense 
of  whereas,  as  by  Shakespeare  and  others  of  the  older  writers.] 

Compounds  of  "Where" 
Where  is  compounded  with  various  particles  as  for.  in,  of, 
to,  ever,  and  uoith,  to  produce  relative  adverbs  and  relative  con 
junctions,  the  same  word  being  often  used  both  as  adverb  and 
conjunction.     (Compare  Relative  Adverbs.)    With  the  excep 
tion  of  wherever,  these  words  have  passed  almost  wholly  out  of 
use,  except  in  formal  or  legal  phraseology.    Their  conjunctive 
meanings  and  uses  are  the  following: 

IVHEREAS 

1,  Noting  or  introducing  a  prologue,  preamble,  or  the  rea- 
son on  which  a  conclusion  is  based,  and  often  correlative  with 
therefore  (see  Correlative  Conjunctions)  :  since  the  facts  are 
such;  in  view  of  existing  circimistances ;  in  view  of  the  fact 
that;  seeing  that;  as,  whereas  our  president  has  tendered  his 
resignation,  therefore  be  it  resolved,  etc. 

2.  Implying  opposition  to  or  contradiction  of  a  previous 
statement :  the  fact  of  the  matter  being ;  when  on  the  contrary ; 
when  in  truth ;  as,  he  assured  me  that  this  was  a  genuine  dia- 
mond, whereas  it  is  only  paste. 

And,  whereas  I  was  black  and  swart  before, 
With  those  clear  rays,  which  she  infus'd  on  me. 
That  beauty  am  I  bless'd  with,  which  you  see. 

Shakespeare  1  K.  Henry  VI.  act  i,  sc.  3,  1.  84. 


wbereat  CONJUNCTIONS  260 

For  by  my  mother  I  derived  am 
From  Lionel,  Dnke  of  Clarence,  the  third  son 
To  King  Edward  the  Third ;  whereas  he 
From  John  of  Gaunt  doth  bring  his  pedigree. 

Shakespeare  ^  K,  Henry  VI.  act  ii,  sc.  5,  1.  76. 

Emotion  is  often  weakened  by  association  with  thought, 
whereas  thoughts  are  always  strengthened  by  emotion. 

H.  R.  Haweis  Music  and  Morals  §  6,  p.  24. 

At  which :  now  little  used  except  in  formal  or  legal  phrase 

ology. 

Whereat  his  horse  did  snort,  as  he 

Had  heard  a  lion  roar.     Cowper  John  Gilpin  st.  52. 

IVHEREBY 

By  means  of  which ;  by  or  through  which ;  near  which ;  as, 
we  see  the  result,  but  not  the  means  whereby  it  is  accomplished. 

They  [the  Saxons]  invented  the  words  'humbug,'  'cant,* 
'sham,'  'gag,'  'soft-sodder,'  'flap  doodle,' and  other  disenchant- 
ing formulas  ivherehy  the  devil  of  falsehood  and  unreality  gets 
his  effectual  apage  Satana ! 

Lowell  My  Study  Windows,  Chaucer  p.  249. 

Our  dragoman  .  .  washed  his  dishes  in  the  sand,  whereby 
they  were  not  only  cleansed  but  scoured. 

H.  M.  Field  On  the  Desert  ch.  3,  p.  49. 

WHEREFOR,  IVHEIREFORE 

For  which ;  for  which  reason 

There  came  a  dwarf  .  .  .  and  found  the  dead  bodies,  where- 
fore he  made  great  dole. 

Sidney  Lanier  Boy's  King  Arthur  bk.  i,  ch.  14,  p.  29. 

WHEREIN 

1.  Definitely    in  which  or  what. 

This  wide  and  universal  theatre 

Presents  more  woful  pageants  than  the  scene 

Wherein  we  play  in. 

Shakespeare  As  You  Like  It  act  ii,  sc.  7,  1.  137. 


261  Defined  and  Illustrated        | 


iirberetii- 

soever 


I  built  my  soul  a  lordly  pleasure-house 
Wherein  at  ease  for  aye  to  dwell. 

Tennyson  Palace  of  Art  st.  1. 

High  Air-castles  are  cunningly  built  of  Words,  the  Words  well 
bedded  also  in  good  Logic -mortar;  wherein,  however,  no  Knowl- 
edge will  come  to  lodge.     Carlyle  Sartor  Resartus  bk.  i,  ch.  8. 

In  the  poorest  cottage  are  books :  is  one  Book,  wherein  for 
several  thousands  of  years  the  spirit  of  man  has  found  light,  and 
nourishment,  and  an  interpreting  response  to  whatever  is  deep- 
est in  him.  Carlyle  Essays,  Corn-Law  Rhymes. 

2.  Indefinitely    in  whatever. 

Dark  night,  that  from  the  eye  his  function  takes, 
The  ear  more  quick  of  apprehension  makes ; 
Wherein  it  doth  impair  the  seeing  sense, 
It  pays  the  hearing  double  recompense. 
Shakespeare  Midsummer -Nights  Dream  act  iii,  so.  2, 1. 179. 

IVHEREIIVISOEYER 

Emphasizing  the  uistributive  or  indefinite  meaning  of  wherein 
now  found  only  in  old  writings  or  style:  in  whatever  place, 
point,  or  respect ;  as.  whereinsoever  we  have  offended. 

Howbeit,  whereinsoever  any  is  bold,  (I  speak  foolishly,)  I  am 
bold  also.  2  Cor.  xi,  21. 

WHEREIIVTO 

Into  which ;  as,  the  gulf  whereinto  he  sailed. 

There  was  no  other  boat  there,  save  that  one  whereinto  his 
disciples  were  entered.  John  vi,  22. 

WHEREOF 

Of  which ;  of  whom. 

Neither  can  they  prove  the  things  whereof  they  now  accuse 
me.  Acts  xxiv,  13. 

WHERETO 

To  which ;  to  whom ;  to  which  place ;  whither. 

Nevertheless,  whereto  we  have  already  attained,  let  us  walk 
by  the  same  rule.  Phil,  iii,  16. 


whereupon  CONJUNCTIONS  262 

IVHEREIJPON 

Upon  which;  upon  whom;  after  which;  in  consequence  of 
which. 

Whereupon  he  promised  with  an  oath  to  give  her  whatsoever 
bhe  would  ask.  Matt,  xiv,  7. 

Whereupon,  O  King  Agrippa,  I  was  not  disobedient  unto  the 
heavenly  vision.  Acts  xxvi,  19. 

IVHEREYER  (lYIIERE'ER) 

In  or  at  whatever  place ;  as,  find  him,  wherever  he  may  be. 
Where'er  is  a  shortened  form  used  chiefly  in  poetry. 

Where'er  ye  fling  the  carrion,  the  raven's  croak  is  loud. 

Macaulay  Virginia  st.  2. 

Where'er  I  canae    I  brought  calamity. 

Tennyson  Dream  of  Fair  Women  st  24. 

Wherever  man  is  .  .  there  is  religion — hopes  that  look  for- 
ward and  upward  —  the  belief  in  an  unending  existence,  and  a 
land  of  separate  souls.  Hugh  Miller  in  Wilson's  Tales  of  the 
Borders,  Recollections  of  Burns  in  vol.  ii,  p.  85. 

Wherever  the  mean  man  sits  is  the  foot  of  the  table. 

J.  F  Clarke  Every-Day  Religion  ch,  12,  p.  185. 

In  brief,  Baal  seems  to  have  been  wherever  his  cultus  was  -es- 
tablished, a  development  or  form  of  the  old  sun-worship. 

Mackey  Encyc.  Freemasonry,  Baal  p.  98. 

Wherever  there  is  an  ascendant  class,  a  large  portion  of  the 
morality  of  the  country  emanates  from  its  class  interests. 

Mill  On  Liberty  ch.  1,  p.  17. 

U^HEREIVITH,  IVHEREH^ITHAL 

With  which. 

O,  my  lord,  wherewith  shall  I  save  Israel  ?  Judges  vi,  15. 

What  shall  we  eat  ?  or.  What  shall  we  drink  ?  or.  Wherewithal 
shall  we  be  clothed  ?  Matt,  vi,  31. 

^VHETHER 

Whether  is  from  the  Anglo-Saxon  hwcether,  which  is  derived 
from  hwd,  who. 


i 


263  Defined  and  Illustrated  wbiie 

As  a  conjunction,  involving  an  implied  question; 

1.  Introducing  the  first  of  two  (or  more)  alternatives,  and 
commonly  correlative  to  a  following  or  or  or  whether  (see  Cor- 
relative Conjunctions)  .  in  case ;  if ;  as,  it  is  decided,  whether 
for  better  or  worse ;  it  is  hard  to  tell  whether  to  go  or  stay. 

It  was  a  toss-up  whether  they  turned  out  well  or  ill. 

T.  Hughes  Tom  Brown  at  Rugby  pt.  i,  ch.  9,  p.  215. 

For  she  loved  him — loved  him  so  I     Whether  he  was  good  or  no. 
Dinah  M.  Craik  The  Little  Comforter  st.  3. 

2.  Introducing  a  single  indirect  question,  with  the  alternative 
and  correlative  omitted  but  understood .  if ;  as,  I  do  not  know 
whether  he  will  consent  [or  not] . 

[Note. — There  are  those  who  would  insist  that  the  correla- 
tive phrase  with  or  must  always  be  added.  But  its  omission  is 
in  accord  with  the  genius  of  our  language,  ever  seeking  to  be 
concise  and  compendious,  and  it  is  in  accord  with  the  usage  of 
the  best  writers 

It  is  doubted  by  the  ablest  judges,  whether,  except  in  the  in- 
troduction of  new  names  for  new  things,  English  has  made  any 
solid  improvement  for  two  centuries  and  a  half. 

G.  P.  Marsh  Lect  on  Eng.  Lang.  lect.  1,  p.  17.] 

While,  from  Anglo-Saxon  hwil,  in  conjunctive  or  adverbial 
use  is  an  abbreviation  of  a  phrase  employing  the  noun  while,  the 
while  [i.  e. ,  the  time]  that. 

1.  During  the  time  that;  in  or  within  the  time  that;  as  long 
as ;  while  he  slept  the  fire  went  out ;  you  are  safe  while  I  am  here. 

While  the  cock  with  lively  din 
Scatters  the  rear  of  darkness  thin. 
And  to  the  stack  or  the  bam  door 
.  Stoutly  struts  his  dames  before. 

Milton  L' Allegro  1.  49. 

And,  while  a  merry  catch  I  troll, 
Let  each  the  buxom  chorus  bear. 

Scott  Lady  of  the  Lake  can.  6,  st.  4. 


while  Conjunctions  264 

Thus  the  lungs  of  the  tadpole  are  developed  while  it  is  yet  a 
breather  of  water.    Winchell  Doctrine  of  Evolution  pref.,  p.  9. 

While  the  horns  are  covered  with  velvet,  which  lasts  with  the 
red  deer  for  about  twelve  weeks,  they  are  extremely  sensitive  to 
a  blow.  Darwin  Descent  of  Man  vol.  ii,  ch.  17,  p.  248. 

While  the  first  drizzling  shower  is  borne  aslope. 

Swift  A  City  Shower  1.  18. 

While  the  border-tale's  told  and  the  canteen  flits  round. 

Lowell  Growth  of  the  Legend  st.  5. 

There  never  can  be  prosperity  in  any  country  wliile  all  the 
numerous  cultivators  of  the  soil  are  permanently  depressed  and 
injured.  John  Bright  Speeches,  Mar.  26,  '4S  p.  443. 

2,  At  the  sam^  time  that;  notwithstanding  the  fact  that; 
though;  although;  as,  while  he  was  severe,  he  was  also  jast. 
Compare  when. 

While  the  hunger  of  the  populace  was  thus  appeased,  its  pas- 
sion for  amusement  was  at  the  same  time  pampered  by  shows 
in  the  theatre  and  circus.     Chas.  Merit  ale  Rome  ch.  26,  p.  186. 

Their  steps  were  graves ;  o'er  prostrate  realms  they  trod 
They  worshipped  Mammon  while  they  vowed  to  God. 

Montgomery  West  Indies  pt.  i,  st.  11. 

He  shivered  absolutism,  while  making  himself  the  most  abso- 
lute prince.  Paxton  Hood  Cromwell  ch.  17,  p.  348. 

Profound  thinkers  are  often  helpless  in  society,  while  shallow 
men  have  nimble  and  ready  minds. 

Mathews  Great  Conversers  essay  i,  p  24. 

While  stone  and  marble  have  perished,  the  stucco  of  these 
[the  Caracalla]  vaults  still  remains,  and  is  as  impressive  as  any 
other  relic  of  ancient  Rome. 

James  Fergusson  Hist  Arch.  vol.  i,  bk.  iv,  ch.  4,  p  334. 

We  know  not  why  riches  are  often  given  to  the  churl,  while 
persons  of  a  liberal  and  bountiful  spirit  have  their  hands  chained 
up  with  poverty.  Watson  Sermons  vol.  ii,  p.  55. 


fses  Defined  and  Illustrated  wbitber 

IVHITHER,  WHITHERISOEVER 

See  whither  under  Relative  or  Conjunctive  Adverbs. 

1.  To  which  or  what;  to  which  or  what  place;  as,  the  city 
whither  they  were  going  was  far  distant. 

They  drew  nigh  unto  the  village  whither  they  went. 

Luke  xxiv,  28. 

The  temple  whither  the  Jews  always  resort.      John  xviii,  20. 

Marry,  as  I  take  it,  to  Rousillon ; 
Whither  I  am  going. 
Shakespeare  AlVs  Well  That  Ends  Well  act.  v.  sc.  1,  1.  29. 

2.  To  any  place  whatever;  as,  you  may  go  whither  you  will: 
in  this  sense  often  whithersoever. 

Then  whither  he  goes,  thither  let  me  go. 

Shakespeare  K.  Rich.  II.  act.  v,  sc.  1, 1.  85. 

I  will  follow  thee  whithersoever  thou  goest.        Matt,  viii,  29. 

WHY 

See  WHY  under  Relative  or  Conjunctive  Adverbs. 

1,  As  a  simple  relative:  because  or  by  reason  of  which;  for 
which ;  as,  this  is  the  reason  why  that  was  done. 

I  could  draft  a  report  that  would  give  theological  reasons  why 
his  appointment  as  a  professor  should  be  vetoed. 

New- York  Tribune  May  29,  1891,  p.  2,  col.  3. 

Indeed,  the  reason  of  our  own  decimal  notation,  why  we  reckon 
by  tens  instead  of  the  more  convenient  twelves,  appears  to  be 
that  our  forefathers  got  from  their  own  fingers  the  habit  of 
counting  by  tens  which  has  been  since  kept  up,  an  unchanged 
relic  of  primitive  man.     E.  B.  Tylor  Anthropology  ch.  1,  p.  18. 

2.  As  a  compound  relative :  the  reason  or  cause  for  which ; 
the  thing  or  reason  on  account  of  which ;  that  for  which ;  as,  I 
will  tell  you  wjiy  I  would  not;  you  will  now  see  why  [i.  e.,  the 
reason  why]  we  can  not  do  it. 

Tell  me,  Laertes,     Why  thou  art  thus  incens'd. 

Shakespeare  Hamlet  act.  iv,  sc.  5, 1.  134 


without  Conjunctions  266 

And  if,  after  the  unmerited  success  of  that  translation,  any 
one  will  wonder  why  I  would  enterprise  the  Odyssey,  .  .  .  Homer 
himself  did  the  same.     Pope  Homer's  Odyssey  postscript,  p.  488. 

[Note. — The  use  of  why  in  introducing  a  sentence  must  not 
be  confounded  with  its  use  as  a  conjunction,  since  it  has  lost  all 
connection  with  the  idea  of  cause  or  reason  in  such  use,  and  has 
become  simply  an  interjection;  as,  why,  that  is  odd! 

An  old  miser  kept  a  tame  jackdaw  that  used  to  steal  pieces 
of  money,  and  hide  them  in  a  hole,  which  a  cat  observing,  asked, 
'Why  he  would  hoard  up  those  round  shining  things  that  he 
could  make  no  use  of?'  *  Why,'  said  the  jackdaw,  'my  master 
has  a  whole  chestful,  and  makes  no  more  use  of  them  than  I 
do.'  Swift  Thoughts  on  Various  Subjects.] 

WITHOUT 

See  WITHOUT  under  Prepositions. 
Unless ;  except ;  as,  it  never  rains  without  it  pours. 
[Introducing  a  substantive  clause,  and  conjunctive  by  ellipsis 
of  that :  in  disuse  by  careful  writers.  Standard  Dictionary. 

He  may  stay  him ;  marry,  not  without  the  prince  be  willing. 
Shakespeare  Much  Ado  about  Nothing  act  iii,  sc.  3, 1.  86.] 

YET 

Yet,  from  Anglo-Saxon  git,  now,  is  used  chiefly  as  an  adverb, 
but  to  a  certain  extent  as  a  conjunction. 

1.  Denoting  something  in  opposition  or  contradiction :  never- 
theless; notwithstanding;  as,  I  come  as  a  friend,  yet  you  treat 

me  as  a  stranger. 

Yet  from  those  flames 
No  light,  but  rather  darkness  visible. 

Milton  Paradise  Lost  bk.  i,  1.  62. 

I  knew  the  foul  enchanter,  though  disguised, 

Enter'd  the  very  lime-twigs  of  his  spells. 

And  yet  came  off.  Milton  Comus  1.  647. 

Forced  by  hunger  to  work  for  the  most  niggardly  pay,  he 
[Samuel  Johnson]  was  yet  not  to  be  insulted  with  impunity. 

H.  CURWEN  Booksellers,  Of  Olden  Times  p.  58. 


267  Defined  and  Illustrated  yet 

Though  th^y  abominate  all  language  purely  bitter  or  sour, 
yet  they  can  relish  discourse  having  in  it  a  pleasant  tartness. 

Barrow  Works,  Sermon,  Eph.  v,  4  in  vol.  i,  p.  132. 

2.  Denoting  contrast  or  unlikeness:  but  at  the  same  time; 
but;  as,  he  is  aged  yet  active  and  enterprising. 

Here  in  the  body  pent, 

Absent  from  Him  I  roam, 
Yet  nightly  pitch  my  moving  tent, 

A  day's  march  nearer  home. 

Montgomery  Anticipations  of  Heaven  st.  2. 

With  unassured  yet  graceful  step  advancing. 

Maria  Brooks  Zophiel  can.  2,  st.  47. 

There  my  life,  a  silent  stream, 
Glid  along,  yet  seem'd  at  rest. 
Montgomery  Wanderer  of  Switzerland  pt.  ii,  st.  8. 

3.  Denoting  concession :  although ;  though ;  as,  he  is  not  here, 
yet  he  promised  to  meet  me. 

And  rank  for  her  meant  duty,  various. 
Yet  equal  in  its  worth,  done  worthily. 
Command  was  service ;  humblest  service  done 
By  willing  and  discerning  souls  was  glory. 

George  Eliot  Agatha. 

Correlative  or  Paired  Conjunctions 

Correlative  conjunctions  are  those  which  are  used  in  pairs  or 

series  in  clauses  that  succeed  each  other  in  the  same  sentence 

and  neither  of  which  makes  complete  sense  without  the  other  or 

others.    The  principal  correlative  conjunctions  are  the  following : 

Although — yet  (see  though);  as — as;  as — so;  both  —  and; 

either — or;  if — then;  neither — nor;  no — nor;  not — nor;  now 

—  the7i;  so  —  as;  though — yet;  whether — or;  whither — thither. 

[Note. — Some  words  other  than  conjunctions  are  included  in 

this  enumeration,  an  adjective  or  adverb  often  forming  part  of 

a  correlation  of  which  the  other  part  is  a  conjunction,  and  being 

conveniently  treated  with  it.] 

[Some  conjunctions  are  apt  to  go  in  pairs,  the  principal  of 
which  are:  as — as,  if — then,  whether — or,  as  —  so,  either — or. 


altbougli-yet  CONJUNCTIONS  268 

though — yet,  both — and,  neither — nor.  One  member  of  the 
pair  can  generally  be  dispensed  with.  It  is  a  question,  fortunately 
not  an  important  one,  whether  one  of  these  pairs  is  one  conjunc- 
tion or  two.  We  have  seen  that  adverbial  and  prepositional 
phrases  may  be  made  up  of  two  or  more  words,  and  the  same  is 
true  of  conjunctions.  We  have  such  compound  expressions  as, 
and  yet,  if  however,  as  soon  as,  inasmuch  as,  now  therefore,  on 
the  other  hand.  Of  however  many  words  such  an  expression 
may  consist,  it  performs  the  work  of  a  single  conjunction,  and 
so  does  one  of  the  pairs  under  consideration. 

Ramsey  English  Language  ch.  8,  p.  494.] 

AL.THOUOH  — YET 

See  THOUGH  — YET. 

AS— AS 
Example :  The  wind  is  as  favorable  as  possible.  In  this  case 
the  first  as  is  classed  as  a  conjunctive  adverb;  it  might  be 
changed,  somewhat  clumsily  to  be  sure,  to  an  adverbial  expres- 
sion; as,  the  wind  is  so  far  favorable  as  [is]  possible.  The 
advantage  of  the  as  is  that  it  binds  the  two  clauses  together, 
pointing  the  mind  on  to  the  concluding  expression.  We  some- 
times hear  colloquially  the  unfinished  phrase ;  as,  "he  was  just  as 
kind,"  where  the  speaker  despairs  of  finding  an  adequate  term 
of  comparison,  while  yet  the  mind  waits  in  suspense  for  the  ex- 
pected completion,  the  as  thus  showing  itself  a  true  connective. 

AS  — SO 

Example :  As  he  lived,  so  he  died.  While  the  so  here  is  an 
adverb,  yet  the  correlatives  have  conjunctive  force,  binding 
each  clause  to  the  other,  each  needing  the  other  to  complete  the 
thought  which  the  whole  sentence  is  designed  to  express. 

BOTH  — AIVD 

Example :  Food  and  lodging  for  both  man  and  beast.  Both 
indicates  the  completeness  of  the  enumeration,  and  also  draws 
attention  individually  to  the  elements  composing  it.  "Both  man 
and  beast"  is  more  emphatic  than  simply  "man  and  beast," 
pausing,  as  it  were,  upon  the  items,  and  showing  that  neither 
has  been  omitted  or  neglected. 


209  Defined  and  Illustrated         either— or 

EITHER  — OR 

Example :  Either  it  will  rain  or  it  will  not.  This  correlation 
presents  to  the  mind  a  pair  of  alternatives,  of  which  one  or  the 
other,  but  not  both,  may  be  accepted  or  found  to  be  true.  The 
enumeration  may  be  extended  to  a  greater  number  of  terms  by 
the  addition  of  successive  clauses  beginning  with  or ;  as,  it  will 
either  rain  or  hail  or  snow.  Or  may  be  omitted  at  each  point  of 
transition  except  the  last,  and  a  comma  substituted ;  as,  either 
rain,  hail,  or  snow.  Either  may  be  omitted  in  simple  and  unem- 
phatic  combinations,  the  alternation  being  sufficiently  expressed 
by  or;  as,  it  will  rain,  hail,  or  snow.  Modem  swiftness  of  ex- 
pression tends  constantly  to  such  omissions,  where  the  meaning 
is  not  made  less  clear. 

Or  is  sometimes  in  poetic  usage  substituted  for  either;  as,  or 
love  or  hate,  or  life  or  death. 

IF  — THEBJ 

Example :  If  this  note  was  in  answer  to  mine,  then  it  must 
have  been  written  at  a  later  date. 

If,  denoting  a  condition  or  supposition,  points  onward  to  a 
conclusion;  then,  denoting  an  inference  or  a  conclusion,  points 
back  to  a  condition  or  supposition,  on  which  it  depends.  Then 
in  such  case  may  be  omitted,  making  the  connection  closer,  but 
calling  less  attention  to  the  separate  steps  of  the  reasoning. 

IVEITHER  —  IVOR 

The  negative  of  either — or,  used  in  the  same  way  and  subject 
to  the  same  conditions.  Any  number  of  alternatives  with  nor 
may  follow  neither. 

As  in  the  case  of  or  after  either,  nor  may  be  omitted  after 
neither,  and  a  comma  substituted  at  each  transition  except  the 
last,  as  in  the  old  New  England  saying,  ''Neither  fish,  flesh,  nor 
good  red  herring." 

Nor  may,  in  poetic  or  highly  rhetorical  utterance,  be  substi- 
tuted for  neither;  as,  nor  threats  nor  promises  could  move  him. 


iio-nor  CONJUNCTIONS  270 

NO— ]^OR 

The  negative  adjective  no  may  take  nor  as  a  correlative 
equivalent  to  and  no;  as,  I  have  no  gold  nor  silver.  For  the 
use  of  or  in  such  connection,  see  under  not  —  nor. 

NOT— l^OR;  NOT— OR 

The  negative  adverb  not  may  take  as  a  correlative  the  con- 
junction nor  equivalent  to  and  not;  as,  you  must  not  move  nor 
speak. 

In  such  correlation,  either  with  no  or  not,  or  may  be  used  in- 
stead of  nor,  but  with  difference  of  emphasis.  Or  groups  the 
alternatives  as  members  of  a  single  class,  spreading  the  meaning 
of  the  introductory  negative  over  all  together ;  nor  takes  each 
item  separately,  assigning  to  it  its  own  individual  negative. 
Thus,  * '  I  want  no  ndtes  nor  promises ;  I  want  money  "  treats  the 
rejected  items  separately,  so  that  we  might  say,  "I  want  no 
notes,  nor  promises  [either],"  etc. 

But  if  one  says,  "I  want  no  notes  or  promises ;  I  want  money," 
he  groups  notes  and  promises  together,  and  discards  them  col- 
lectively. Nor  emphasizes  and  individualizes  the  items  which 
or  groups  in  one  total  with  slighter  discrimination  of  parts. 
Nor  is  therefore  the  more  emphatic  particle  in  such  correlation. 
The  same  is  true  of  or  and  nor  after  not.  ' '  You  must  not  move 
nor  speak"  treats  the  moving  and  the  speaking  as  separate  ac- 
tivities to  be  individually  repressed;  "You  must  not  move  or 
speak  "  groups  moving  and  speaking  together  in  opposition  to  per- 
fect stillness,  without  concentrating  attention  upon  either  one. 

In  such  a  statement  as  "I  will  not  do  it,  nor  consider  it,"  nor 
is  the  necessary  correlative,  since  the  latter  clause  is  emphatic 
in  its  own  nature,  being  added  to  make  the  refusal  more  abso- 
lute ;  the  meaning  might  be  given  more  fully  by  saying,  ' '  I  will 
not  do  it,  nor  even  consider  it." 

SO  — AS 

So  is  more  emphatic  than  as  in  introducing  a  balanced  com- 
parison, and  has  a  suggestion  of  weight  and  solemnity;  as,  so 


271  Defined  and  Illustrated  sucn-as 

long  as  time  shall  last,  his  memory  shall  endure.  This  is  a 
stronger  and  more  impressive  statement  than  "As  long  as  time 
shall  last,"  etc.  Also,  after  a  negative  so  is  preferred  to  as  as 
the  j&rst  of  two  correlatives.  We  say,  **He  is  as  tall  as  I  am," 
but,  negatively,  on  the  contrary,  "He  is  not  so  tall  as  I  am." 

SUCH  — AS;   SUCH  — THAT 

The  adjective  such  indicating  comparison  takes  as  its  correl- 
ative as  or  that. 

[Such  is  essentially  a  term  of  comparison,  and  to  complete  its 
force  that  with  which  comparison  is  made  requires  to  be  ex- 
pressed, implied,  or  understood.  When  expressed,  as  or  that  is 
used  before  the  subject  of  the  comparison  as  the  correlative  of 
such ;  as,  such  a  voice  as  hers  is  unusual ;  the  averment  was  such 
that  it  could  not  be  gainsaid.  Standard  Dictionary.^ 

THOUGH— YET;   ALTHOUGH— YET 

Example:  Though  (or  although)  I  belie^^^e  the  contrary,  yet  I 
am  open  to  conviction.  These  correlatiT ef  a"^  e  at  the  same  time 
disjunctives,  setting  their  respective  clauses  in  sharp  opposition 
while  combining  the  contrasted  thoughts  in  a  single  affirmation. 

IVHETHER  — OR 

Example :  I  am  in  doubt  whether  to  buy  or  sell. 

This  correlation  always  expresses  uncertainty  or  hesitation 
looking  toward  decision  or  choice. 

Where  the  concluding  phrase  is  a  simple  negative,  all  but  the 
negative  and  correlative  may  be  omitted,  the  rest  being  under- 
stood from  what  goes  before ;  as,  he  can  not  decide  ichether  to  go 
or  notf  i.  e. ,  whether  to  go  or  not  [to  go] . 

No  is  often  substituted  for  not,  forming  the  idiomatic  phrase 
whether  or  no ;  as,  he  is  going  whether  or  no ;  i.  e, ,  whether  his 
going  is  approved,  permitted,  safe,  etc.,  or  not. 

Still  further,  the  entire  concluding  phrase  may  be  omitted, 
especially  in  familiar  speech,  leaving  whether  to  stand  without 
correlative ;  as,  let  me  know  whether  to  expect  you  [or  noi}. 


PART    III 


PART     III 


b 


Relative  Pronouns  Defined  and  Illustrated 

The  relative  pronouns  are  whOj  which,  what,  that,  and  as,  with 
the  inflections  of  who,  viz. :  the  objective  whom  and  the  possessive 
whose,  and  the  compounds  in  -ever,  -so,  and  -soever,  as,  whoever, 
whoso,  whosoever,  whomever,  whomsoever,  whosesoever,  whichever, 
whichsoever,  ichatever,  and  whatsoever, 

[Note. — In  the  list  as  given  above,  the  words  are  placed  in  the 
order  commonly  adopted  by  grammarians,  which  is  probably  due 
to  the  fact  that  who  is  used  of  persons,  giving  it  the  place  of  dig- 
nity, while  which  and  what  are  naturally  associated  with  who. 
In  the  separate  treatment  of  the  words,  however,  the  alphabetical 
order,  used  elsewhere  throughout  this  book,  will  be  followed.] 

Who,  which,  and  what  are  used  also  as  inteiTogative  pronouns, 
and  that  as  a  demonstrative  pronoim ;  but  as  when  so  used 
they  are  not  properly  connectives,  those  uses  will  not  be  here 
considered. 

AS 
As  is  most  frequently  used  as  an  adverb  or  as  a  conjunction. 
(See  under  Conjunctions.)  It  is,  however,  also  used  with  the 
force  of  a  pronoun.  In  some  such  uses  in  the  older  writers  it 
would  be  possible  to  substitute  that  without  appreciable  change 
of  meaning ;  as  : 

I  have  not  from  your  eyes  that  gentleness, 
And  show  of  love,  as  1  was  wont  to  have. 

Shakespeare  Julius  Ccesar  act  i,  sc.  2, 1.  33. 
Here  we  might  say  : 

"...  that  gentleness, 
And  show  of  love,  that  I  was  wont  to  have." 

(275) 


Relative  Pronouns  276 


In  the  Tatler  (conducted  by  Addison  and  Steele,  1709)  we  read 
of  "a  body  of  men  as  [that]  lay  in  wait." 

This  usage  would  now  be  considered  incorrect  or  inelegant. 
But  after  the  correlatives  as  (adv.),  same,  so,  and  such,  as  is  used 
with  pronominal  force.  In  many  such  cases  it  would  be  very  dif- 
ficult to  treat  it  either  as  an  adverb  or  as  a  conjunction.  Its 
meaning  as  a  pronoun  can  not  be  directly  defined,  because  no 
other  word  or  set  of  words  will  take  its  place  with  the  same  cor- 
relative force.  But  its  pronominal  import  will  appear  from  the 
fact  that  who,  which,  or  that  might  in  many  cases  be  substituted 
by  a  slight  change  in  the  form  of  the  sentence,  especially  of  the 
verb.    Thus : 

By  breadth  is  meant  such  a  massing  of  the  quantities,  ,  ,  .  as 
shall  enable  the  eye  po  pass  without  obstruction  .  .  .  from  one  to 
another,  so  that  it  shall  appear  to  take  in  the  whole  at  a  glance. 
W.  Allston  Lectures  on  Art,  Composition  p.  154. 

Here  we  might  substitute  that,  except  that  the  latter  word 
lacks  the  correlative  force.  By  omitting  "such"  from  the  first 
clause,  that  may  be  readily  substituted  in  the  second;  thus,  *'a 
massing  of  the  quantities  that  shall  enable  the  eye,"  etc. 

Again : 

On  the  sides  of  the  cave  were  fan-like  ivory  tracings,  such  as 
the  frost  leaves  upon  a  pane. 

Haggard  King  Solomon's  Mines  ch.  16,  p.  235. 

The  reference  here  is  not  to  manner  or  mere  sequence  of 
thought.  It  is  not  "  as  the  frost  leaves  a  pane."  The  reference  is 
to  something  traced  upon  the  pane,  and  we  might  give  the  mean- 
ing precisely  by  substituting  for  *'  such  as  "  the  words  "  like  those 
which,"  "like  those"  carrying  the  meaning  of  "such"  and 
"which"  of  "as";  thus,  "fan-like  ivory  tracings  like  those  which 
the  frost  leaves  upon  a  pane."  There  are  many  cases  in  which 
the  exact  part  of  speech  represented  by  as  is  admittedly  difficult 
to  assign,  and  as  to  which  grammarians  would  not  agree.  A  safe 
rule  would  be,  that  where  as  can  not  be  readily  explained  as  a 


277  Defined  and  Illustrated  that 

conjunction  or  as  an  adverb,  it  should  be  classed  as  a  relative  pro- 
noun. The  very  untranslatableness  of  as  makes  it  one  of  the 
closest  of  all  connectives.  It  seems  to  have  a  meaning  belonging 
in  part  to  the  clause  preceding,  and  in  part  to  the  clause  contain- 
ing it,  while  the  two  references  are  so  indissolubly  entwined  that 
it  is  impossible  to  separate  them ;  and  of  the  two  clauses  so  con- 
nected neither  is  complete  without  the  other. 

For  in  those  days  shall  be  affliction  such  as  was  not  from  the 
beginning  of  the  creation.  Mark  xiii,  19. 

Those  as  ^eep  and  think  not  on  their  sins. 

Shakespeare  Merry  Wives  of  Windsor  act  v,  sc.  5,  1.  57. 

[Note. — Such  usage  as  in  the  quotation  from  Shakespeare 
given  above  would  now  be  classed  as  illiterate  and  incorrect.] 

If  thou  tak'st  more, 
Or  less,  than  a  just  pound, — be  it  but  so  much 
As  makes  it  light  or  heavy  in  the  substance, 
Or  the  division  of  the  twentieth  part 
Of  one  poor  scruple  .  .  . 
Thou  diest. 

Shakespeare  Merchant  of  Venice  act  iv,  sc.  1,  1.  328. 

It  eats  and  sleeps,  and  hath  such  senses 
As  we  have,  such. 

Shakespeare  Tempest  act  i,  sc.  2, 1.  413. 

His  coursers  are  of  such  immortal  strain  as  were  the  coursers 
of  Achilles.  A.  B.  Edwards  Up  the  Nile  ch.  16,  p.  298. 

The  viceroy  still  further  enlarged  his  resources  by  the  seques- 
tration of  the  revenues  belonging  to  such  ecclesiastics  as  resided 
in  Rome.  Prescott  Philip  II.  vol.  i,  bk.  i,  ch.  6,  p.  171. 

There  was  no  class  of  human  beings  so  low  as  to  be  beneath 
his  sympathy.  Channing  Works,  Char,  of  Christ  p.  309. 

THAT 

For  its  etymology,  see  that  in  place  under  Conjunctions. 

That  is  the  most  general  of  the  relative  pronouns,  being  used 
indiscriminately  for  persons  or  things.  Like  as,  that  is  almost 
insusceptible  of  definition;  it  may  be  imperfectly  rendered  as 


that  Relative  Pronouns  278 

**the  one";  thus,  **the  man  that  I  saw"  may  be  converted  into 
"the  man ;  the  one  I  saw";  the  latter  phrase  retains  the  general 
sense,  but  loses  the  connective  force  of  the  phrase  employing 
**  that,^^  In  the  expression  **  the  man  that  I  saw,"  ^^that"  is  the 
object  of  the  following  verb,  "saw,"  while  at  the  same  time  it 
points  back  to  the  preceding  noun  "man"  as  its  antecedent,  thus 
welding  the  preceding  and  following  words  into  a  single  vvliole. 

That,  though  older  than  who  or  which,  was  at  one  time  almost 
displaced  by  these  last-cited  relatives.  It  has  recovered  its  position, 
but  an  attempt  is  now  being  made  to  assign  it  separate  territory 
from  who  and  which.    See  Distinctions  under  who. 

[That  came  in  during  the  twelfth  century  to  supply  the  place 
of  the  indeclinable  relative  the,  and  in  the  fourteenth  century  it 
is  the  ordinary  relative.  In  the  sixteenth  century,  which  often 
supplies  its  place;  in  the  seventeenth  century,  who  replaces  it. 
About  Addison's  time,  that  had  again  come  into  fashion,  and  had 
almost  driven  which  and  who  out  of  use.       Century  Dictionary.] 

[Steele,  in  the  Spectator,  with  the  ignorance  of  English  philol- 
ogy so  common  in  that  age,  presents  the  "Humble  Petition  of 
Who  and  Wliich  against  the  upstart  Jack  Sprat,  That,  now  trying 
to  supplant  them."  The  truth  was,  they  were  supplanting  That. 
Perhaps  he  was  not  acquainted  with  the  English  Psalter  of  1380 : 

"  Blesse  thou,  my  soule,  to  the  Lord  !  and  wile  thou  not  forzete 
all  the  zeldingus  of  him. 

That  hath  mercy  to  alle  thi  wickednessis ;  that  helith  alle  thin 
infirmyties. 

That  azen-bieth  fro  deth  thi  lif ;  that  crowneth  thee  in  mercy 
and  mercy -doingis. 

That  fulfiUeth  in  goode  thingus  thy  deseyr." 

In  all  ages  of  the  English  tongue  that  has  been  the  standard  rela- 
tive of  the  body  of  the  people,  and  to  this  day  which  is  stiff  and 
formal,  suggestive  of  the  student's  lamp  or  the  pedagogue's  birch. 
Here  is  an  excellent  example : 

"  This  is  the  cock  that  crew  in  the  morn. 
Unto  the  farmer  sowing  his  com, 
That  met  the  priest  with  his  pen  and  ink-horn. 
That  married  the  man  so  tattered  and  torn, 


2T9  Defined  and  Illustrated  that 

That  kissed  the  maiden  all  forlorn, 
That  milked  the  cow  with  the  crumpled  horn, 
That  tossed  the  dog,  that  worried  the  cat, 
That  killed  the  rat,  that  ate  the  malt. 
That  lay  in  the  house,  that  Jack  built." 

This  familiar  word  occurs  here  eleven  times ;  and  to  replace  it  by 
which  and  icho  would  destroy  the  rippling  rhythm  that  has  de- 
lighted the  young  ears  of  so  many  generations. 

Ramsey  English  Language  pt.  ii,  ch.  4,  p.  332.] 

That  is  subject  to  certain  differences  in  grammatical  construc- 
tion from  who  or  which.    See  Distinctions  under  who. 

[That  in  this  use  [as  a  relative  pronoun]  is  never  used  with  a 
preposition  preceding  it,  but  may  be  so  used  when  the  preposition 
is  transposed  to  the  end  of  the  clause ;  thus,  the  man  of  whom  I 
spoke,  the  book  from  ivhich  I  read,  the  spot  near  which  he  stood, 
the  pay  for  which  he  works ;  but  not  the  man  of  that  I  spoke, 
etc.,  though  one  may  say,  the  man  that  I  spoke  o/,  the  book  that 
I  read  from^  the  place  that  he  stood  near,  the  pay  that  he  works 
for,  and  so  on.  Century  Dictionary,] 

[The  relatives  that  and  as  have  this  peculiarity ;  that,  unlike 
whom  and  which,  they  never  follow  the  word  on  which  their  case 
depends  :  nor  indeed  can  any  simple  relative  be  so  placed,  except 
it  be  governed  by  a  preposition  or  an  infinitive.  Thus,  it  is  said 
(John,  xiii,  29th),  ''Buy  those  things  that  we  have  need  o/;"  so  we 
may  say,  "  Buy  such  things  as  we  have  need  of."  But  we  cannot 
say,  "Buy  those  things  of  that  we  have  need;"  or,  **Buy  such 
things  of  as  we  have  need."  Though  we  may  say,  "Buy  those 
things  of  ivhich  we  have  need,"  as  well  as,  "Buy  those  things  ivhich 
we  have  need  o/;"  or,  "Admit  those  persons  of  whom  we  have 
need,"  as  well  as,  "Admit  those  persons  whom  we  have  need  o/." 
By  this  it  appears  that  that  and  as  have  a  closer  connexion  with 
their  antecedents  than  the  other  relatives  require :  a  circumstance 
worthy  to  have  been  better  remembered  by  some  critics.  GOOLD 
Brown  Grammar  of  English  Grammars  pt.  ii,  ch.  5,  p.  304.] 

He  that  is  strucken  blind  cannot  forget 
The  precious  treasure  of  his  eyesight  lost. 

Shakespeare  Romeo  and  Juliet  act  i,  so.  1, 1.  238. 


that  Relative  Pronouns  2§0 

Her  cap  of  velvet  could  not  hold 
The  tresses  of  her  hair  of  gold, 
That  flowed  and  floated  like  the  stream, 
And  fell  in  masses  down  her  neck. 

Longfellow  Christus  pt.  vi,  1.  375. 

Rapt  into  still  communion  that  transcends 
The  imperfect  offices  of  prayer  and  praise. 

Wordsworth  The  Excursion  bk.  i,  st.  9. 

Our  choices  are  our  destiny.  Nothing  is  ours  that  our  choices 
have  not  made  ours. 

A.  Bronson  Alcott  Table-Talk  bk.  ii,  p.  157. 

Cheerless  night  that  knows  no  morrow. 

Burns  Raving  Winds  st.  1. 

What  thought  so  wild,  what  airy  dream  so  light 
That  will  nqt  prompt  a  theorist  to  write  ? 

Crabbe  The  Library  1.  383. 

There  are  certain  books  that  are  read  to  be  laid  aside,  and  there 
are  certain  other  books  that  are  laid  aside  to  be  read. 

J.  T.  Fields  Underbrush,  Paul  and  Virginia  p.  253. 

A  fellow-feeling  that  is  sure    To  make  the  outcast  bless  his  door. 

Lowell  The  Heritage  st.  6. 

No,  Freedom  has  a  thousand  charms  to  show 
That  slaves,  howe'er  contented,  never  know. 

CowPER  Table-Talk  1.  260. 

Domestic  Happiness,  thou  only  bliss 
Of  Paradise,  that  has  survived  the  fall ! 

CowPER  The  Task  bk.  iii,  1.  41. 

[Note. — The  relative  that  is  often  omitted — a  usage  which 
some  criticize  as  colloquial,  but  which  has  high  literary  authority, 
and  is  often  forcible  by  compactness  and  elegant  by  seeming  sim- 
plicity. In  many  of  the  following  quotations  that  is  supplied  in 
bracket6--[^/ia^]— as  indicating  where  the  meaning  if  fully  ex- 
pressed wcnild  require  it,  but  not  as  indicating  that  such  expression 
would  be  desirable. 

Words  are  grown  so  false,  [that]  I  am  loath  to  prove  reason 
with  them.  Shakespeare  Twelfth  Night  act  iii,  sc.  1, 1.  28. 


281  Defined  and  Illustrated  wbat 

While  I  deduce, 
From  the  first  note  [that]  the  hollow  cuckoo  sings, 
The  symphony  of  spring. 

Thomson  The  Seasons,  Spring  1.  576. 

Wouldst  thou  be  famed  ?  have  those  high  acts  in  view, 
Brave  men  would  act  though  scandal  would  ensue. 

Young  Love  of  Fame  satire  vii,  1.  175. 

Circumstances  try  the  metal  [that]  a  man  is  really  made  of. 
WiLKiE  Collins  Moonstone,  The  Story  period  i,  ch.  11,  p.  98. 

Mr.  Lecky  has  justly  remarked  that  the  only  charge  [that] 
utilitarians  can  bring  against  vice  is  that  of  imprudence, 

W.  S.  Lilly  On  Eight  and  Wrong  ch.  2,  p.  48. 

Complaint  is  the  largest  tribute  [that]  heaven  receives,  and  the 
sincerest  part  of  our  devotion. 

Swift  Works,  Thoughts  on  Various  Subjects  p.  517. 

It  was  one  of  the  propositions  [that]  Jefferson  often  talked 
about  in  private,  that  the  high  places  of  Europe  were  tilled  with 
imbeciles,  the  result  of  consanguineous  marriages. 

Joseph  Cook  Heredity  lect.  x,  p.  263.] 

WHAT 

For  its  etymology  see  what  under  Conjunctions. 
What  as  a  pronoun  is  both  interrogative  and  relative,  the  in- 
terrogative use  coming  first  in  order  of  time. 

[What,  ivho,  and  which  were  all  originally  interrogatives  only, 
and  their  interrogative  and  relative  senses  often  mingle  and  pass 
into  each  other,  so  as  not  to  be  easily  distinguished. 

Standard  Dictionary.] 

The  connective  uses  of  what  are  the  following : 

1  •  As  a  relative  : 

(a)  A  Simple  Relative 
Formerly  as  a  simple  relative,  equivalent  to  that,  which,  or 
tvho.    This  use,  always  limited,  has  long  been  accounted  a  vul- 
garism;  as,  "If  I  had  a  donkey  what  wouldn't  go."      What  is 
never  so  used  by  good  writers  or  speakers  of  the  present  day. 


wiiat  Relative  Pronouns  2§2 

(6)  A  Double  Relative 
What  has  the  peculiarity  of  being  a  double  relative  equivalent 
to  a  demonstrative  followed  by  a  simple  relative,  and  correctly 
defined  as  that  which ;  as,  I  know  what  [that  which]  he  told  me ; 
I  will  see  what  [that  which]  is  in  the  room  ;  I  do  not  know  what 
[that  which]  he  has  done. 

For  what  I  will,  I  will,  and  there  an  end. 
Shakespeare  Two  Gentlemen  of  Verona  act  i,  sc.  3,  1.  65. 

What  man  dare,  I  dare. 

Shakespeare  Macbeth  act  iii,  sc.  4, 1.  95. 

Omission  to  do  what  is  necessary 
Seals  a  commission  to  a  blank  of  danger. 
Shakespeare  Troilus  and  Cressida  act  iii,  sc.  3,  1.  230. 

Approve  the  best  and  follow  what  I  approve. 

Milton  Paradise  Lost  bk.  viii,  1.  611. 

Think  not  I  am  what  I  appear. 

Byron  The  Bride  of  Abydos  can.  i,  st.  12. 

And  what  he  greatly  thought,  he  nobly  dared. 

Homer  The  Odyssey  Pope's  transl.,  bk.  ii,  1.  312. 

The  other  day  I  was  what  you  would  call  floored  by  a  Jew. 

Coleridge  Table  Talk  July  8,  1830. 

Everywhere  in  life,  the  true  question  is  not  ivhat  we  gain,  but 
what  we  do.  Carlyle  Essays  Goethe's  Helena  1[  6,  1.  31. 

No  one  will  give  anything  for  what  can  be  obtained  gratis. 

Mill  Political  Economy  bk.  i,  ch.  1,  p.  54. 

That  idea  of  duty  .  .  .  which  is  to  the  moral  life  what  the 
addition  of  a  great  central  ganglion  is  to  animal  life. 

George  Eliot  Janefs  Repentance  ch.  10,  p.  255. 

What  ardently  we  wish,  we  soon  believe. 

Young  Night  Thoughts  night  vii,  pt.  ii,  1.  1311. 

And  what  they  dare  to  dream  of,  dare  to  do. 
Lowell  Ode  Recited  at  the  Harvard  Commemoration  July  21, 
1865,  St.  3. 

2.  As  an  interrogative  in  a  dependent  sentence,  having  the 
force  of  a  relative  :  when  the  question  ^'what  was  that?"  passes 


I 


2§3  Defined  and  Illustrated  wbieU 

into  the  form  '*he  asked  me  what  that  was,"  what  becomes  a  true 
comieciive,  and  scai'cely  distinguishable  from  a  relative. 

For  prevision — the  perception  of  tvhat  is  to  turn  up  hereafter 
—  is  an  apprehension  of  phenomena.         Martineau  Essays  p.  27. 

They  [women]  ought  to  know  what  is  fact  and  tvhat  is  fol-de- 
rol.  Gail  Hamilton  in  Atlantic  Monthly  Apr.,  1863,  p.  419. 

'  Every  man,'  said  Imlac,  *  may  by  examining  his  own  mind 
guess  what  passes  in  the  minds  of  others/ 

Johnson  Rasselas  ch.  16,  p.  76. 

If  you  would  be  better  satisfied  what  tlie  beatifical  vision 
means,  my  request  is,  that  you  live  holily  and  go  and  see. 

BuNYAN  Works,  Joys  of  Heaven  p.  81. 

[There  is  still  another  use  of  what  in  which  some  authorities 
(as  the  Standard  Dictionary)  class  it  as  an  adjective,  while  others 
(as  the  Century  Dictionary)  treat  it  as  a  pronoun  used  adjectivally ; 
as,  '^What  flag  is  that?"  or  "  He  asked  me  what  flag  that  was."] 

What  poet  of  her  own  sex,  except  Sappho,  could  she  [Mrs. 
Browning]  herself  find  worthy  a  place  among  the  forty  immortals 
grouped  in  the  hemicycle  of  her  own  *  Vision  of  Poets.' 

E.  C.  Stedman  Victorian  Poets  ch.  4,  p.  115. 

There  is  no  estimating  or  believing,  till  we  come  into  a  position 
to  know  it,  what  foolery  lurks  latent  in  the  breast  of  very  sensible 
people.  Hawthorne  Our  Old  Home  p.  25. 

IVHICH 

Which  is  from  Anglo-Saxon  hwilc,  from  hwd,  who,  plus  -lie,  -ly. 
Which  is  both  an  interrogative  and  a  relative  pronoun.  The  two 
uses  shade  into  one  another  so  as  to  be  often  difficult  to  discrimi- 
nate. See  note  under  what.  As  in  the  case  of  what,  it  will  be 
desirable  here  to  give  a  certain  amount  of  consideration  to  both 
uses  of  the  pronoun  which. 

Which  is  both  singular  and  plural ;  the  objective  is  the  same 
in  form  as  the  nominative  ;  whose  is  used  as  the  possessive.  See 
WHOSE.  As  to  the  use  of  which  with  reference  to  persons,  see 
Distinctions  under  which. 


Yviiieii  Eelative  Pronouns  284 

Which  as  an  interrogative  asks,  wliat  one  of  a  certain  number, 
class,  or  group,  implying  that  the  number,  class,  or  group  is 
known,  the  only  question  being  the  selection  of  one  or  more  from 
among  the  others. 

It  is  as  a  relative  that  which  has  connective  use  in  the  signifi- 
cations following ; 

[Note. — Which  as  a  relative  is  not  now  used  of  persons.  See 
Distinctions.] 

1.  Simply  descriptive  or  restrictive,  with  such  reference  to  an 
antecedent  object  as  binds  the  two  clauses  in  close  connection: 
the  one  that ;  that ;  such  as ;  as,  this  is  the  paper  which  I  referred 
to  ;  that  is  the  matter  to  ivhich  we  must  give  our  attention. 

[Note. — If  that  were  substituted  in  the  second  example  given 
above,  it  would  be  i^ecessary  to  reverse  the  order  of  the  words, 
putting  the  preposition  at  the  end  of  the  clause ;  as,  that  is  the 
matter  that  we  must  give  our  attention  to.] 

I  have  found  the  piece  which  I  had  lost.  Luke  xv,  9. 

That  in  the  captain's  but  a  choleric  word, 
Which  in  the  soldier  is  flat  blasphemy. 
Shakespeare  Measure  for  Measure  act  ii,  sc.  2,  1.  130. 

Vain,  very  vain,  my  weary  search  to  find 
That  bliss  which  osly  centres  in  the  mind. 

Goldsmith  The  Traveller  1.  423. 

The  burlesquing  spirit  which  ranges  to  and  fro  and  up  and 
down  on  the  earth,  seeing  no  reason  .  .  .  why  it  should  not  ap- 
propriate every  sacred,  heroic,  and  pathetic  theme. 

George  Eliot  Theophrastus  Such  ch.  10,  p.  76. 

2.  Resumptive  or  explanatory,  referring  to  an  antecedent  in 
such  a  way  as  sharply  to  distinguish  what  is  said  of  it  in  the  pre- 
ceding from  what  is  said  of  it  in  the  following  clause,  so  that  a 
phrase  involving  a  conjunction,  as  and  or  since^  might  be  substi- 
tuted for  which :  and  it ;  and  that ;  and  this  ;  namely ;  viz. ;  as,  it 
was  something  to  eat,  which  [and  that]  was  all  we  asked  for  ;  here 
is  the  boat,  which  [and  it]  is  stanch  and  seaworthy;  this  document, 
which  [since  it ;  as  it]  is  brief  and  clear,  will  answer  every  purpose. 


285  Defined  and  Illustrated  wIiIgIi 

[Note. — In  some  such  cases  a  participial  phrase  might  be  substi- 
tuted for  which  with  its  accompanying  word.  Thus  in  the  last 
sentence  given  above  we  might  say,  '*this  document  deingr  brief 
and  clear,"  etc.] 

The  other  keeps  his  dreadful  day-book  open 
Till  sunset,  that  we  may  repent ;  which  doing, 
The  record  of  the  action  fades  away. 

Longfellow  Christus  pt.  vi,  1.  228. 

Books  are  the  legacies  that  a  great  genius  leaves  to  mankind, 
which  are  delivered  down  from  generation  to  generation,  as  pres- 
ents to  the  posterity  of  those  who  are  yet  unborn. 

Addison  The  Spectator  No.  166,  1.  24. 

And  after  this  comes  the  bush  proper,  the  gro\\  th  (^f  a  few  years 
which  admits  no  ingress  whatever  within  its  shade. 

Stanley  In  Darkest  Africa  vol.  ii,  ch.  23,  p.  79. 

It  is  the  secret  sympathy, 

The  silver  link,  the  silken  tie, 

Which  heart  to  heart,  and  mind  to  mind, 

In  body  and  in  soul  can  bind. 

Scott  Lay  of  the  Last  Minstrel  can.  v,  st.  13. 

3.  In  indirect  question,  where  the  inteiTogative  and  relative 
significations  intermingle,  used  substantively  or  adjectivally : 
what  one  (of  a  number  or  class  referred  to) ;  as,  please  tell  me 
zvhich  you  prefer ;  I  must  know  which  you  decide  upon ;  did  you 
see  ivhich  way  he  went? 

[Note. — The  use  of  ichich  merely  to  introduce  a  relative  clause 
containing  another  that  is  the  true  object  of  the  verb  is  now  dis- 
countenanced as  illiterate,  though  it  was  once  approved ;  as,  I 
order  you  to  leave,  which  if  you  don't  do  it,  I  shall  take  measures 
to  make  you. 

Which  I  wish  to  remark,  and  my  language  is  plain. 
Bret  Harte  Plain  Language  from  Truthful  James  st.  1.] 

Distinctions 
What — which — who:      Which,   as  already  stated,   refers    to 
some  one  or  more  among  a  class  or  group  of  objects  definitely 


wliicli  Relative  Pronouns  286 

known  or  clearly  referred  to.  What  is  unlimited  in  range  of  ref- 
erence. ^'What  book  would  you  like?"  opens  the  way  to  selec- 
tion from  among  all  books  ever  made.  *'  Which  book  would  you 
like?"  restricts  the  thought  to  some  known  group  of  books,  as 
those  in  one's  hands,  on  a  table,  in  a  room,  library,  store,  or  else- 
where. "Ask  what  you  will"  is  boundless  permission;  "Ask 
which  you  will"  restricts  the  choice  to  one  of  certain  alternatives. 

Whatf  either  as  interrogative  or  as  relative,  though  it  may  be 
used  with  reference  to  persons,  is  used  chiefly  of  animals,  inani- 
mate objects,  abstractions,  etc.  It  is  possible  to  say  ^^What  man  is 
that?"  though  more  usual  to  ask  ^^Who  is  that?"  or  ^'Who  is 
that  man?"  As  used  with  reference  to  persons,  what  applies  to 
origin,  character,  or  ofl&ce ;  as,  an  emergency  will  show  what  a 
man  is.  One  remarks,  "  That  man  is  not  the  President,"  and  the 
question  is  asked  in  response,  **  What  is  he  then?"  that  is,  ^'What 
office  does  he  hold?"  In  speaking  directly  to  the  person  con- 
cerned, the  latter  form  would  be  the  more  courteous.  ^^What 
are  you  ?  "  unless  in  familiar  conversation  would  seem  rude,  and 
might  be  asked  in  such  a  tone  as  to  be  absolutely  insulting. 

Which  as  interrogative  may  refer  either  to  persons  or  things ; 
as,  to  which  person  do  you  refer?  which  is  the  man?  To  ask 
*^Who  is  the  man?"  would  leave  the  question  open  to  all  man- 
kind and  be  equivalent  to  "  Which  one  of  all  the  men  in  the 
world?"  or  to  ** Is  there  any  man  who?"  etc.  But  in  the  ques- 
tion **  Which  is  the  man?"  "  which'^  carries  its  distributive  force, 
and  asks  "  What  one  [of  these  especially  referred  to,  as  in  a  group 
or  line]  is  the  man?" 

Which  as  a  relative  formerly  referred  to  persons  as  well  as  to 
things,  and  is  often  so  used  in  the  Scriptures ;  as,  Our  Father 
which  art  in  heaven.  It  is  now,  however,  used  only  of  animals 
and  of  inanimate  objects,  abstractions,  etc.,  often  referring  to  an 
entire  clause  or  preceding  statement  or  fact  expressed  or  implied. 
Who  is  now  used  exclusively  of  persons.  See  who.  That  may 
take  the  place  of  either  ivho  or  which.    See  Distinctions  under 

WHO. 


287  Defined  and  Illustrated  wlio 

WHO 

WhOy  from  Anglo-Saxon  /ii<?d,  is  both  an  interrogative  and  a 
relative  pronoun.  Though  used  of  persons,  it  is  not  classed  as  a 
personal  pronoun,  because  it  does  not  specify  what  person  is  in- 
tended, as  is  done  by  J,  thoUy  /le,  etc.,  but  applies  indefinitely  to 
either  of  the  three  persons  as  its  antecedent  may  determine  ;  as,  I 
am  the  one  who  built  the  house  [first  person]  ;  you  are  the  friend 
who  helped  me  [second  person]  ;  he  is  the  one  who  hindered  me 
[third  person].  Who  is  both  singular  and  plural,  and  may  refer 
to  an  antecedent  of  any  number  or  gender. 

[  Who  is  always  used  substantively,  and  as  referring  to  one  or 
more  persons.  In  number,  it  is  uninflected,  being  singular  or 
plural  as  required  by  its  antecedent.  In  case,  it  has  ivhose  for  its 
possessive  and  whom  for  its  objective.         Standard  Dictionary,] 

As  the  objective  whom  presents  no  special  difficulty,  it  will  be 
considered  in  connection  with  its  nominative,  who ;  but  since  the 
possessive  whose  is  used  also  as  the  possessive  of  which^  it  will  re- 
ceive special  and  separate  treatment.    See  whose. 

As  an  interrogative,  who  asks  for  the  identification  of  some 
person  or  persons,  as  for  the  name  of  a  person  answering  to  a  cer- 
tain description,  or  for  the  doer  of  a  certain  act :  which  or  what 
person;  as,  who  did  this?  who  was  the  gi*eatest  of  poets?  who 
was  Charlemagne  ? 

Who  has  connective  force  as  a  relative,  introducing  a  depend- 
ent clause,  and  identifying  the  subject  or  object  in  a  relative 
clause  with  that  of  the  principal  clause :  in  such  use  not  admitting 
of  definition  by  any  other  word  or  words,  though  often  inter- 
changeable with  that  (see  Distinctions)  ;  as,  this  is  the  man  who 
brought  the  message ;  have  you  met  the  lady  who  lives  here  ? 
there  are  the  guests  who  came  yesterday ;  I  will  lead  you  to  tlie 
man  whom  you  seek. 

Thou  who  hast 
The  fatal  gift  of  beauty. 

Byron  Childe  Harold  can.  iv,  st.  43. 


wiio  Relative  Pronouns  28§ 

Telling  tales  of  the  fairy  who  travelled  like  steam 

In  a  pumpkin-shell  coach,  with  two  rats  for  her  team  I 

Whittier  The  Pumpkin  st.  4. 

And  critics  have  no  partial  views, 
Except  they  know  whom  they  abuse. 
And  since  you  ne'er  provoke  their  spite, 
Depend  upon't  their  judgment's  right. 

Swift  On  Poetry  1.  129. 

He  ne'er  is  crowned 
With  immortality,  who  fears  to  follow 
Where  airy  voices  lead. 

Keats  Endymion  bk.  ii,  1.  212. 

Errors,  like  straws,  upon  the  surface  flow ; 

He  who  would  search  for  pearls,  must  dive  below. 

Dryden  All  for  Love  prologue. 

Thou  knowest  the  maiden  who  ventures  to  kiss  a  sleeping  man, 
wins  of  him  a  pair  of  gloves. 

Scott  Fair  Maid  of  Perth  ch.  5, 1.  444. 

Some  positive  persisting  fops  we  know. 
Who,  if  once  wrong,  will  needs  be  always  so. 

Pope  Essay  on  Criticism  pt.  iii,  1.  9. 

A  man  lohom  it  is  proper  to  praise  cannot  be  flattered,  and  a 
man  who  can  be  flattered  ought  not  to  be  praised. 

Holland  Lessons  in  Life  lesson  xix,  p.  273. 

A  fundamental  mistake  to  call  vehemence  and  rigidity 
strength  !  A  man  is  not  strong  who  takes  convulsion-fits ;  though 
six  men  cannot  hold  him  then. 

Carlyle  Heroes  and  Hero-Worship  lect.  v,  p.  170. 

[Note. — By  ellipsis  or  omission  of  its  antecedent,  who  may  be 
used  with  the  force  of  a  double  relative,  equivalent  to  he  that, 
they  that,  the  one  or  ones  that,  etc.;  as,  whom  the  gods  would 
destroy  they  first  make  mad.  With  the  exception  of  some  old 
proverbial  sayings,  this  usage  is  now  confined  to  poetry. 

Nor  think  thou  with  wind 
Of  aery  threats  to  awe  whom  yet  with  deeds 
Thou  canst  not.         Milton  Paradise  Lost  bk.  vi,  1.  282. 


289  Defined  and  Illustrated  who 

Who  best    Bear  his  mild  yoke,  they  serve  Him  best. 

Milton  Sonnet,  On  His  Blindness  1.  10. 

Who  never  walks  save  where  he  sees  men's  tracks 
Makes  no  discoveries.      Holland  Kathrina,  Labor'  st.  83. 

To  get  thine  ends,  lay  bashfulnesse  aside ; 
Who  feares  to  aske,  doth  teach  to  be  deny'd. 

Herrick  Hesperides,  No  Bashfuleness  in  Begging. 

Who  builds  a  church  to  God,  and  not  to  Fame, 
"Will  never  mark  the  marble  with  his  name. 

Pope  Moral  Essays  ep.  iii,  1.  285.] 

Distinctions 

That — which — who :  Reference  has  been  made  to  the  differ- 
ence between  the  restrictive  and  the  resumptive  use  of  the  rela- 
tives. In  the  restrictive  use,  the  clause  introduced  by  the  relative 
simply  limits  the  antecedent  to  a  certain  class,  number,  or  the 
like,  indicated  by  the  relative  clause ;  as,  ''This  is  the  book  that  I 
refer  to."  This  sentence  might  be  changed  to  a  participial  form 
with  no  change  of  meaning;  as,  " This  is  the  book  referred  to  by 
me.*'  The  latter  rendering  of  the  thought  shows  that  the  relative 
clause  in  the  restrictive  sense  has  really  adjectival  force,  so  that 
the  restrictive  use  has  been  by  some  termed  explanatory,  and  by 
others  definitive.  The  restrictive  use  thus  simply  brings  out 
something  supposed  to  be  contained  in  the  antecedent,  or  limits 
the  antecedent  to  one  of  many  possible  meanings. 

In  the  resumptive  use,  on  the  contrary,  something  is  really 
added  by  the  relative  clause ;  as,  *'I  will  tell  you  the  story,  which 
I  have  come  to  believe  to  be  true."  Here  the  clause  with  tchich 
adds  something  to  the  thought  of  the  principal  sentence,  so  that  a 
conjunction  and  pronoun  might  be  substituted  for  which;  as, 
"This  is  the  story,  and  I  have  come  to  believe  it  to  be  true." 
This  resumptive  use  is  also  termed  coordinating  or  descriptive. 
That,  which,  and  who  have  been  for  the  most  part  used  indis- 
criminately in  the  restrictive  sense,  it  being  possible  to  say  either 
"The  man  who  was  ill  has  recovered,"  or  "The  man  that  was 

ill,"  etc.;  "This  is  the  book  that  [or  which}  I  brought  with  me." 
19 


wiio  Relative  Pronouns  290 

That  is  rarely,  if  ever,  used  resumptively,  who  or  which  being 
employed  in  that  sense.  But  the  use  of  who  or  which  in  both  the 
restrictive  and  the  resumptive  sense  leads  to  a  certain  possible 
ambiguity.  Thus,  "  I  have  seen  the  man  who  promised  to  meet 
us  "  may  mean  either  ' '  the  man  [the  one  that]  promised  "  or  "  the 
man,  [and  he]  promised  to  meet  us."  This  ambiguity  is  often 
avoided  by  the  use  of  a  comma,  **  the  man  ivho  promised"  being 
understood  as  restrictive,  and  "the  man,  who  promised"  as  re- 
sumptive or  coordinating.  But  punctuation  is  a  dubious  expe- 
dient. Hence  many  would  use  that  in  all  cases  w^here  the  relative 
is  restrictive  or  explanatory,  and  who  or  which  vs^here  it  is  resump- 
tive or  coordinating.  Thus,  "This  is  the  house  that  [i.  e.,  the  par- 
ticular one  that]  I  built  for  my  own  use "  would  be  restrictive, 
but  "This  is  the  house,  which  I  built  for  my  own  use"  [i.  e.,  and 
I  built  it  for  my  own  use]  would  be  resumptive ;  "  I  have  seen  the 
man  that  [the  particular  one  that]  brought  me  the  despatches" 
being  restrictive,  but  "  I  have  seen  the  man,  who  [and  he]  brought 
me  the  despatches  "  being  resumptive. 

Such  a  distinction  would  be  convenient,  but  many  reasons 
operate  against  its  uniform  enforcement. 

That  being  impersonal,  its  use  would  seem  in  many  cases  to 
depersonalize  its  antecedent.  "Washington  that  gave  us  so 
grand  an  example  of  patriotism  "  would  be  an  undesirable  expres- 
sion, seeming  to  treat  the  great  historic  man  as  a  mere  item  or 
quantity.  Who  is  needed  in  such  a  sentence  for  the  expression  of 
personality. 

[That,  in  modern  use,  rarely  introduces,  being  simply  demon- 
strative and  restrictive,  and  often  preceded  by  the  definite  article. 
Thus  we  say :  Washington,  who  was  the  first  President,  is  often 
called  Father  of  his  country.  The  Washington  that  emigrated  to 
this  country  was  his  ancestor.  In  the  first  sentence  that  could 
have  been  used  formerly,  but  is  never  so  used  now;  in  the  second, 
however,  who  may  be  used,  though  many  object  to  its  use  as  con- 
fusing. Standard  Dictionary.] 

The  present  tendency  seems  to  be  to  the  use  of  who  as  the  rela- 
tive in  all  direct  reference  to  a  person  or  persons. 


201  Defined  and  Illustrated  who 

Where  the  antecedent  is  something  other  than  a  person,  as  one 
of  the  lower  animals,  an  inanimate  object,  or  an  abstraction,  it 
would  seem  to  be  a  simple  matter  to  use  that  as  the  restrictive  and 
which  as  the  resumptive  relative.  But  here  a  serious  difficulty  in- 
tervenes. That  can  not  be  governed  by  a  preceding  preposition, 
but  must  put  its  governing  preposition  at  the  end  of  the  clause. 

[  Who,  which,  and  that  agree  in  being  relatives,  and  are  more 
or  less  interchangeable  as  such ;  but  who  is  used  chiefly  of  persons 
(though  also  often  of  the  higher  animals),  which  almost  only  of 
animals  and  things  (in  old  English  also  of  persons),  and  that  indif- 
ferently of  either,  except  after  a  preposition,  where  only  who  or 
which  can  stand.  Some  recent  authorities  teach  that  only  that 
should  be  used  when  the  relative  clause  is  limiting  or  defining : 
as,  the  man  that  runs  fastest  wins  the  race ;  but  uho  or  ivhich, 
when  it  is  descriptive  or  coordinating :  as,  this  man,  who  ran 
fastest,  won  the  race ;  but,  though  present  usage  is  perhaps  tend- 
ing in  the  direction  of  such  a  distinction,  it  neither  has  been  nor 
is  a  rule  of  English  speech,  nor  is  it  likely  to  become  one,  espe- 
cially on  account  of  the  impossibility  of  setting  that  after  a  prepo- 
sition ;  for  to  turn  all  relative  clauses  into  the  form  "the  house 
that  Jack  lived  m"  (instead  of  "  the  house  in  which  Jack  lived") 
would  be  intolerable.  In  good  punctuation  the  defining  relative 
is  distinguished  (as  in  the  examples  above)  by  never  taking  a 
comma  before  it,  whether  it  be  who  or  which  or  that. 

Century  Dictionary,] 

Thus,  the  sentence  *'He  has  a  diamond  for  which  he  paid  a 
thousand  dollars"  would  become,  by  the  substitution  of  that,  *'He 
has  a  diamond  that  he  paid  a  thousand  dollars  for.^^  While  this 
latter  construction  is  perfectly  correct,  there  are  many  occasions 
when  it  would  be  inconvenient,  clumsy,  or  undignified.  "There 
is  a  matter  of  national  importance  to  which  1  desire  to  call  your 
attention  "  would  not  be  improved  by  the  change  into  "  There  is  a 
matter  of  national  importance  that  I  desire  to  call  your  attention 
fo."  The  sentence  ending  with  the  particle  "  <o"  is  less  weighty 
than  the  one  ending  with  the  word  ^^  attention,"  while  the  con- 
versational style  of  the  former  sentence  seems  less  suited  to  an  im- 
portant occasion. 


whose  Eelative  Pronouns  292 

WHOSE 

Whose,  the  possessive  of  who,  requires  no  comment  when  so 
used.  But  whose  is  also  used  as  the  possessive  of  which,  and  this 
usage  has  been  strenuously  objected  to  by  many  grammarians. 
As  to  this  usage,  it  should  be  observed  that  we  greatly  need  a  pos- 
sessive for  the  pronoun  which,  the  prepositional  phrase  of  which 
being  often  clumsy  and  inconvenient.  To  supply  this  need,  the 
possessive  whose  has  been  employed  by  many  eminent  writers. 

[The  pronoun  who  is  usually  applied  only  to  persons.  Its 
application  to  brutes  or  to  things  is  improper,  unless  we  mean  to 
personify  them.  But  whose,  the  possessive  case  of  this  relative,  is 
sometimes  used  to  supply  the  place  of  the  possessive  case,  other- 
wise wanting,  to  the  relative  which.  Examples  :  '  The  mutes  are 
those  consonants  whose  sounds  cannot  be  protracted.' — Murray^ s 
Gram,,  p.  9.  'Philosophy,  ivhose  end  is,  to  instruct  us  in  the 
knowledge  of  nature.' — i6.,  p.  54 ;  CampbelVs Rhet.,  p.  421.  '  Those 
adverbs  are  compared  whose  primitives  are  obsolete.' — Adam''s 
Latin  Gram.,  p.  150.  'After  a  sentence  whose  sense  is  complete 
in  itself,  a  period  is  used.' — Nutting's  Gram.,  p.  124.  'We  re- 
member best  those  things  whose  parts  are  methodically  disposed, 
and  mutually  connected.' — Beattie's  Moral  Science,  i,  59.  'Is 
there  any  other  doctrine  whose  followers  are  punished?' — Addi- 
son: Murray  8  Gram.,  p.  54;  Lowth\s,  p.  25. 

*  The  question,  ivhose  solution  I  require, 
Is,  what  the  sex  of  women  most  desire.' — Dryden. 

Lowth,  p.  25. 
Buchanan,  as  well  as  Lowth,  condemns  the  foregoing  use  of 
whose,  except  in  grave  poetry,  saying,  '  This  manner  of  personi- 
fication adds  an  air  of  dignity  to  the  higher  and  more  solemn 
kind  of  poetry,  but  it  is  highly  improper  in  the  lower  kind,  or  in 
prose.' — Buchanan's  English  Syntax,  p.  73.  And,  of  the  last  two 
examples  above  quoted,  he  says,  '  It  ought  to  be  of  ivhich,  in  both 
places  :  i.  e.  The  followers  of  which;  the  solution  of  which.' — Ih., 
p.  78.  The  truth  is,  that  no  personification  is  here  intended. 
Hence  it  may  be  better  to  avoid,  if  we  can,  this  use  of  whose,  as 
seeming  to  imply  what  we  do  not  mean.  But  Buchanan  himself 
(stealing  the  text  of  an  older  author)  has  furnished  at  least  one 
example  as  objectionable  as  any  of  the  foregoing :  *  Prepositions 
are  naturally  placed  betwixt  the  Words  ivhose  Relation  and  De- 


293  Defined  and  Illustrated  whose 


pendence  each  of  them  is  to  express.' — English  Syntax ^  p.  90; 
British  Gram.,  p.  201.  I  dislike  this  construction,  and  yet  some- 
times adopt  it,  for  want  of  another  as  good.  It  is  too  much,  to 
say  with  Churchill,  that  'this  practice  is  now  discountenanced  by 
all  correct  writers.' — New  Gram.,  p.  226.  Grammarians  would 
perhaps  differ  less,  if  they  would  read  more.  Dr.  Campbell  com- 
mends the  use  of  whose  for  of  which,  as  an  improvement  suggested 
by  good  taste,  and  established  by  abundant  authority.  See  Phi- 
losophy of  Rhetoric,  p.  420.  '  Whose,  the  possessive  or  genitive 
case  of  who  or  which;  applied  to  persons  or  things.' — Webster^ s 
Octavo  Diet.  '  Whose  is  well  authorized  by  good  usage,  as  the 
possessive  of  which.' — Sanborn's  Gram.,  p.  69.  'Nor  is  any  lan- 
guage complete,  whose  verbs  have  not  tenses.' — Harris's  Hermes. 

*  Past  and  future,  are  the  wings. 


On  whose  support,  harmoniously  conjoined, 
Moves  the  great  spirit  of  human  knowledge.' — MS. 

Wordsworth's  Preface  to  his  Poems,  p.  xviii. 
GrOOLD  Brown  Grammar  of  English  Grammars  pt.  ii,  ch.  5,  p.  299.] 

The  personal  use  of  whose  is  so  clear  as  scarcely  to  need  illus- 
tration : 

His  house  was  known  to  all  the  vagrant  train. 
He  chid  their  wanderings  but  reliev'd  their  pain  ; 
The  long-remembered  beggar  was  his  guest. 
Whose  beard  descending  swept  his  aged  breast. 

Goldsmith  Deserted  Village  1.  149. 

Ye  mariners  of  England 

Who  guard  our  native  seas, 
Whose  flag  has  braved,  a  thousand  years, 

The  battle  and  the  breeze ! 

Campbell  Mariners  of  England  st.  1, 

The  use  of  whose  with  reference  to  animals,  abstractions,  or 
inanimate  objects  is  common  among  authors  of  foremost  emi- 
nence, as  the  following,  among  many  illustrations,  will  abun- 
dantly show : 

'Tis  beauty  truly  blent,  whose  red  and  w^hite 
Nature's  own  sweet  and  cunning  hand  laid  on. 

Shakespeare  Ticelfth  Night  act  i,  sc.  5, 1.  257. 


IV hose  Relative  Pronouns  294 

Beauty  is  a  witch, 
'Against  whose  charms  faith  meltelh  into  blood. 
Shakespeare  Much  Ado  About  Nothing  act  ii,  sc.  1, 1.  186. 

A  horned  stag,  whose  side  a  shaft  hath  pierc'd. 

Homer  Iliad  tr.  by  F.  W.  Newman,  bk.  xi,  1.  476. 

No  stone  is  fitted  in  yon  marble  girth 

Whose  echo  shall  not  tongue  thy  glorious  doom. 

Tennyson  Tiresias  st.  10. 

His  *  lady '  glares  with  gems  whose  vulgar  blaze 
The  poor  man  through  his  heightened  taxes  pays. 

Lowell  Tempora  Mutantur  1.  63. 

)Some  slow  water-rat,  whose  sinuous  glide 

Wavers  the  sedge's  emerald  shade  from  side  to  side. 

Lowell  Summer  Storm  st.  1. 

Ye  lakes,'  whose  vessels  catch  the  busy  gale. 

Goldsmith  Traveller  1.  47. 

Spires  whose  *  silent  finger  points  to  heaven.' 

Wordsworth  The  Excursion  bk.  vi,  1.  19. 

[That  Shandon  bell]. 
Whose  sounds  so  wild  would, 
In  the  days  of  childhood. 
Fling  round  his  cradle 
Its  magic  spell. 
Blanchard  Jerrold  Final  Eeliques  of  Father  Prout  p.  86. 

'Twas  not  the  fading  charms  of  face 
That  riveted  Love's  golden  chain ; 

It  was  the  high  celestial  grace 
Of  goodness,  that  doth  never  wane — 

Whose  are  the  sweets  that  never  pall, 

Delicious,  pure,  and  crowning  all. 

Abraham  Coles  Prayer  in  Affliction  can.  2,  st.  3. 

Mere  facts  .  .  .  are  the  stones  heaped  about  the  mouth  of  the 
well  in  whose  depth  truth  reflects  the  sky. 

E.  C  Stedman  Nature  and  Elements  of  Poetry  ch.  6,  p.  196. 

It  was  essentially  a  buccaneering  expedition,  whose  naked  ob- 
ject was  plunder  and  murder.  E.  P.  Whipple  Essays  and  Re- 
views, PrescotVs  Peru  in  vol.  ii,  p.  195. 


295  Defined  and  Illustrated  whose 

At  last  the  ancient  inn  appears,  .  .  . 
Whose  flapping  sign  these  fifty  years 
Has  seesawed  to  and  fro. 

Holmes  Agnes  pt.  11,  st.  9. 
The  country  whose  exports  are  not  sufficient  to  pay  for  her  im- 
ports offers  them  on  cheaper  terms,  until  she  succeeds  in  forcing 
the  necessary  demand.  Mill  Polit.  Econ.  bk.  lii,  ch.  17,  p.  4^1. 

Relative  Compounds  in  "-ever,"  "-so,**  "-soever** 
Who,  which,  and  what  add  the  suffixes  -ever  and  soever  with 
distributive  effect,  to  denote  universality.  Thus,  whoever  or 
whosoever  applies  to  any  one  of  all  humanity,  or  even  of  all  in- 
telligent beings,  without  limitation.  Whoso  is  equivalent  to 
whosoever,  but  is  now  archaic.  The  possessive  whosesoever,  once 
In  good  use,  has  also  been  found  too  cumbrous  for  modem  speech 
to  retain.  Whichever  and  whichsoever  apply  to  any  one  of  some 
class  designated  or  had  in  mind  (see  which),  with  express  denial 
of  all  limitation  within  that  class.  Whatever  and  whatsoever 
emphasize  the  unlimited  meaning  of  what,  directly  expressing 
that  which  the  pronoun  what  of  itself  implies.  Thus,  "Take 
what  you  will "  applies  to  any  object  or  any  number  of  objects 
that  may  fall  within  one's  choice;  **Take  whatever  you  will" 
says  the  same  thing,  only  more  explicitly  and  emphatically. 
Whoever,  whichever,  and  whatever  are  in  common  use,  but 
modem  language,  with  its  tendency  to  brevity  and  simplicity, 
has  dropped  the  forms  in  -soever,  which  are  now  found  only  in 
the  older  literature  or  in  a  style  modeled  upon  the  archaic. 

Whatsoever  things  are  true,  whatsoever  things  are  honest, 
...  if  there  be  any  praise,  think  on  these  things.  Phih  iv,  8. 

Whosoever  has  seen  a  person  of  powerful  character  and  happy 
genius  will  have  remarked  how  easily  .  .  .  nature  became  ancil- 
lary to  a  man.  Emerson  Nature  ch.  3,  p.  27, 

Whateer  betide,  we'll  turn  aside    And  see  the  Braes  of  Yarrow. 

Wordsworth  Yarrow  Unvisited  st.  1. 

Whatever  comes  from  the  brain  carries  the  hue  of  the  place 
it  came  from.  Holmes  Professor  ch.  6,  p.  185. 


whatever  RELATIVE  PRONOUNS  296 

Whatever  in  books  or  reading  weakens  the  conscience  or  cor- 
rupts the  moral  feelings,  should  be  rejected  as  evft. 

Porter  Books  and  Reading  ch.  9,  p.  101. 

Whatever  shows  that  a  greater  happiness  is  to  be  found  in 
immaterial  things  tends  to  stifle  the  utilitarianism  which  is  the 
cause  of  the  growing  paralysis  of  American  life. 

W.  J.  Stillman  in  Atlantic  Monthly  Nov.,  1891,  p.  694. 

Whatever  be  the  means  of  preserving  and  transmitting  prop- 
erties, the  primitive  types  have  remained  permanent  and  im- 
changed. 

Agassiz  in  Mrs.  Agassiz's  Louis  Agassiz  vol.  ii,  ch.  25,  p.  780. 

Whoever  strives  to  do  his  duty  faithfully  is  fulfilling  the  pur- 
pose for  which  he  was  created.        Smiles  Character  ch.  1,  p.  15. 

By  the  5th  and  6th  of  Edward  VI. ,  chap.  14,  it  was  enacted, 
that  whoever  shoul(J  buy  any  corn  or  grain  with  intent  to  sell  it 
again,  should  be  reputed  an  unlawful  engrosser. 

Adam  Smith  Wealth  of  Nations  vol.  ii,  bk.  iv,  ch.  5,  p.  104. 

He  assumed  that  whatever  belonged  to  the  cardinal  family 
belonged  to  him ;  perhaps  he  even  thought  she  went  with  the 
house.  Olive  T.  Miller  In  Nesting  Time  ch.  12,  p.  209. 


PART    IV 


Qssrr) 


PART    IV 


Relative  or  Conjunctive  Adverbs  Defined 
and  Illustrated 

There  are  certain  adverbs  which  besides  their  use  in  denoting 
place,  manner,  time,  or  the  lika  serve  also  to  join  a  subordinate 
to  a  principal  clause,  and  are  hence  called  relative  or  conjunctive 
adverbs. 

The  principal  adverbs  so  used  are  the  following:  hencCy 
henceforthy  henceforwardy  hoWy  however,  now,  so,  then,  thence, 
thenceforth,  thencefoi^ward,  when,  whence,  whencesoever,  when- 
ever, whensoever,  v^h  irt,  whither,  why. 

Hence,  from  Anglo-Saxon  heonan,  is  primarily  an  adverb  of 
place,  signifying  away  from  this  place ;  it  is  then,  by  natural  ex- 
tension, applied  to  time,  in  the  sense  of  onward  from  this  time,  in 
the  future ;  it  is  finally  used  of  cause  or  reason,  origin  or  source, 
and  in  this  use  becomes  a  connective,  requiring  a  knowledge  of 
what  precedes  for  the  understanding  of  that  which  follows. 
Compare  thence  and  whence. 

1 ,  Of  cause  or  reason :  because  of  this  or  that  (thing,  event, 
fact,  circumstance,  or  state  of  affairs  mentioned  or  referred  to) ; 
consequently ;  therefore ;  as,  his  means  are  limited :  hence  he  is 
compelled  to  economize. 

2.  Of  origin  or  source :  as  a  result  of ;  proceeding  from ;  as, 

the  word  *' guilt"  has  been  variously  understood:  hence  have 

arisen  endless  disputes  about  sin,  responsibility,  etc. 

And  here  we  wander  in  illusions : 

Some  blessed  power  deliver  us  from  hence  ! 

Shakespeare  Comedy  of  Errors  act  iv,  sc.  3,  1.  42. 

CK») 


lieiiceforth    RELATIVE  OR  CONJUNCTIVE  ADVERBS        300 

H£]¥€E FORTH,   HENCEFORWARD 

Henceforth  and  henceforward,  self-explaining  compounds, 
convey  emphatically  tlie  meaning  of  hence  with  reference  to 
time :  from  this  time  forth,  onward,  or  forward ;  in  all  the  future. 

Pardon  me,  wife.     Henceforth  do  what  thou  wilt. 
Shakespeare  Merry  Wives  of  Windsor  act  iv,  sc.  4,  1.  7. 

All  manner  of  men,  assembled  here  in  arms  this  day,  against 
God's  peace,  and  the  king's,  we  charge  and  command  you,  in  his 
highness'  name,  to  repair  to  your  several  dwelling-places ;  and 
not  to  wear,  handle,  or  use,  any  sword,  weapon,  or  dagger, 
henceforward,  upon  pain  of  death. 

Shakespeare  l  K.  Henry  VI.  act  i,  sc.  3,  1.  79. 

HOW 

Hmv,  from  Anglo-Saxon  hu,  is  closely  akin  to  the  Anglo-Saxon 
hwy,  hwl,  why,  and  is  primarily  an  interrogative.  When  the 
direct  question  becomes  indirect  or  dependent,  the  interrogative 
has  the  force  of  a  relative;  thus,  in  the  question,  ''How  did  he 
do  it  ?  "  the  ''how "  is  independent  of  anything  that  may  precede ; 
but  in  the  sentence,  ''Tell  me  how  he  did  it,"  neither  clause  is 
complete  without  the  other,  and  this  latter  "how"  is  the  con- 
nective that  binds  the  two  clauses  into  one  sentence,  having  the 
force  of  a  relative.  Hence  the  interrogative  readily  passed  into 
relative  use,  with  the  following  meanings : 

1.  In  what  way  or  manner;  as,  tell  me  how  it  was  done. 

How  he  gormandizes,  that  jolly  miller!  rasher  after  rasher, 
how  they  pass  away  frizzling  hot  and  smoking  from  the  gridiron 
down  the  immense  grinning  gulf  of  a  mouth  1 

Thackeray  in  F.  G.  Stephens's  George  Cruikshanh  p.  83. 

There  must  be  discussion,  to  show  how  experience  is  to  be  in- 
terpreted. Mill  On  Liberty  ch.  2,  p.  40. 

Hear  how  the  birds,  on  ev'ry  blooming  spray, 
With  joyous  musick  wake  the  dawning  day! 

Pope  Pastorals,  Spring  1.  23. 


301  Defined  and  Illustrated  how 

[Note.— After  words  of  caution,  as  take  care,  beware,  etc., 
how  is  almost  equal  to  of  with  a  participle,  or  to  that  not. 

Let  a  man  beware  how  he  keepeth  company  with  choleric  and 
quarrelsome  persons.       Bacon  Essays,  Of  Travel  in  vol.  i,  p.  62. 

The  meaning  here  evidently  is,  ''beware  of  keeping  com- 
pany," etc.,  or  "beware  that  he  does  not  keep  company,"  etc., 
but  how  expresses  the  warning  with  delicate  yet  forcible  indi- 
rectness.] 

2.  By  what  means,  process,  or  agency;  as,  it  is  a  question 
how  the  ore  can  be  separated  from  the  rock. 

In  the  beginning,  hoiv  the  heav'ns  and  earth 

Rose  out  of  chaos.      Milton  Paradise  Lost  bk.  i,  1. 10. 

Upon  the  wall  of  rock  was  placed  a  second  wall  of  snow, 
which  dwindled  to  a  pure  knife-edge  at  the  top.  .  .  .  How  to 
pass  this  snow  catenary  I  knew  not. 

Tyndall  Hours  of  Exercise  ch.  9,  p.  99. 

3.  To  what  degree,  extent,  or  amount;  by  what  number, 
measure,  or  quantity ;  in  what  proportion ;  as,  let  me  know  how 
much  is  due ;  I  wish  to  find  how  high  that  building  is. 

Jesu  I  Jesu !  the  mad  days  that  I  have  spent !  and  to  see  how 
many  of  mine  old  acquaintance  are  dead ! 

Shakespeare  ^  K.  Henry  IV.  act  iii,  sc.  2,  1.  34. 

And  underneath  is  written, 

In  letters  all  of  gold, 
How  valiantly  he  kept  the  bridge 

In  the  brave  days  of  old. 

Macaulay  Horatius  st.  50. 

Those  evening  bells !  those  evening  bells ! 
How  many  a  tale  their  music  tells, 
Of  youth,  and  home,  and  that  sweet  time 
When  last  I  heard  their  soothing  chime ! 

Moore  Those  Evening  Bells  st.  1. 

It  is  incalculable  how  much  that  royal  bigwig  cost  Germany. 
Thackeray  Four  Georges,  George  I.  p.  278. 


iiow         Relative  or  Conjunctive  Adverbs  302 

How  purely  true,  liow  deeply  warm, 
The  inly-breathed  appeal  may  be. 

Eliza  Cook  Prayer  st.  1. 

4.  In  what  condition  or  state ;  as,  let  us  see  how  the  account 

stands. 

How  would  you  be, 

If  He,  which  is  the  top  of  judgment,  should 

But  judge  you  as  you  are  ? 

Shakespeare  Measure  for  Measure  act  ii,  sc.  2, 1.  76. 

5.  At  what  price;  for  what  sum;  as,  I  inquired  how  the  stock 
sold. 

Shallow.  .  .  .  How  a  good  yoke  of  bullocks  at  Stamford  fair  ? 
Silence.  Truly,  cousin,  I  was  not  there. 

4«-  *  4t  *  *  *  * 

Shallow.  .  .  .  How  a  score  of  ewes  now  ? 
Silence.  Thereafter  as  they  be ;  a  score  of  good  ewes  may  be 
worth  ten  pounds. 

Shakespeare  2  K.  Henry  IV.  act  iii,  sc.  2, 1.  39. 

6.  By  what  name  or  designation ;  as,  find  how  he  is  called  by 
his  own  people. 

y.  For  what  reason ;  why ;  as,  I  can  not  understand  how  he 
came  to  do  it. 

Ford.    And  sped  you,  sir  ? 
Falstaff.    Very  ill-favouredly.  Master  Brook. 
Ford.    How  so,  sir  ?    Did  she  change  her  determination  ? 
Shakespeare  Merry  Wives  of  Windsor  act  iii,  sc.  5,  1.  65. 

If  we  ask  how  out  of  the  state  of  innocence  man  can  ever 
have  fallen  into  evil,  we  can  find  no  answer ;  the  origin  of  evil 
is  unsearchable.  Caird  Kant  vol.  ii,  bk.  iv,  ch.  1,  p.  568. 

8.  Denoting  at  once  manner  and  result,  after  relate,  report, 
say,  tell,  and  the  like :  nearly  equivalent  to  the  conjunction  that ; 
formerly  how  that ;  as,  he  told  me  how  he  was  reduced  to  poverty. 

Guermonprez  described  lately  how  a  person  had  remained 
three  days  in  hypnosis,  nobody  being  able  to  wake  him. 

Albert  Moll  Hypnotism  ch.  2,  p.  37. 


303  ,       Defined  and  Illustrated  iiowever 

How  without  anxiety  or  care  the  flower  woke  into  loveliness. 
Drummond  Natural  Law,  Growth  p.  123. 

howi:y£r 

See  HOWEVER  nnder  Conjunctions. 

In  whatever  manner,  way,  or  state ;  by  whatever  means ;  to 
whatever  amount  or  degree ;  as,  the  work  must  be  done,  how- 
ever difficult  it  may  be. 

And  yet  I  knew  that  every  wrong 
However  old,  however  strong, 
But  waited  God's  avenging  hour. 

Whittier  Astrcea  at  the  Capitol  st.  7. 

Every  station  in  life,  however  great  or  however  prosperous, 
has  its  drawbacks,  its  checks,  its  limits. 

A.  P.  Stanley  Thoughts  that  Breathe  §  74,  p.  128. 

Glacier  ice,  however  hard  and  brittle  it  may  appear,  is  really 
a  viscous  substance,  resembling  treacle,  or  honey,  or  tar,  or  lava. 

Tyndall  Forms  of  Water  If  390,  p.  155. 

Truth  is  the  same,  however  different  .  .  .  the  quantity  appre- 
hended by  us.  HoLLis  Read  God  in  Hist.  ch.  10,  p.  184. 

However  1  may  err  in  future,  I  will  never  be  disingenuous  in 
acknowledging  my  errors. 

Frances  Burney  Evelina  letter  Ix,  p.  281. 

No  people  ever  lived  by  cursing  their  fathers,  hoivever  great 
a  curse  their  fathers  might  have  been  to  them. 

Thoreau  Cape  Cod  ch.  2,  p.  19. 

Now,  from  Anglo-Saxon  nil,  an  adverb  of  time,  referring  to 
the  immediate  present,  has  in  certain  uses  the  force  of  a  con- 
nective. 

1.  In  the  way  of  logical  inference,  a  conjunctive  use :  in  view 

of  the  facts  stated ;  things  being  so ;  in  such  circumstances ;  as, 

"  That  is  the  situation.    Now,  what  shall  we  do  ? " 

Being  mad  before,  how  doth  she  now  for  wits  ? 

Shakespeare  Venus  and  Adonis  1.  249. 


so  Relative  or  Conjunctive  Adverbs  304 

How  now  shall  this  be  compassed  ? 

Shakespeare  The  Tempest  act  iii,  sc.  2,  1.  59. 

[Note.  — Now  in  this  sense  is  often  nsed  almost  as  an  expletive, 
having  reference  to  facts  not  mentioned,  but  mutually  under- 
stood ;  as,  now,  no  trifling. 

Now  in  this  sense  is  also  used  elliptically,  with  the  force  of 
now  that;  as,  now  I  am  in  need,  my  friends  desert  me.] 

2,  As  a  correlative,  followed  by  another  now  or  by  then :  at 
one  time  (contrasted  with  another  time). 

Now  .  .  .  now,  now  .  .  .  then,  at  one  time  ...  at  another  time ; 
as,  he  is  now  talkative,  now  taciturn ;  he  was  now  timid,  then  rash. 

And  now  he  feels  the  bottom ; 

Now  on  dry  earth  he  stands ; 
Now  rqund  him  throng  the  Fathers 

To  press  his  gory  hands ; 
And  now  with  shouts  and  clapping, 

And  noise  of  weeping  loud, 
He  enters  through  the  River-Gate, 

Borne  by  the  joyous  crowd. 

Macaulay  Horatius  st.  48. 

The  bells  themselves  are  the  best  of  preachers, 
Their  brazen  lips  are  learned  teachers. 
From  their  pulpits  of  stone,  in  the  upper  air. 
Sounding  aloft,  without  crack  or  flaw. 
Shriller  than  trumpets  under  the  Law, 
Now  a  sermon  and  now  a  prayer. 

Longfellow  The  Golden  Legend  pt.  iii,  st.  33. 
Now  .  .  .  then :    See  then. 

The  political  needle  was  .  .  .  pointing  noio  to  one  set  of  men 
as  the  coming  Government  and  then  to  another. 

Trollope  Phineas  Finn  ch.  35,  p.  262. 

SO 

See  so  under  Conjunctions.  See  also  Correlative  Con- 
junctions. So,  as  an  adverb,  has  relative  and  connective  force, 
by  reference  to  a  standard  of  comparison  elsewhere  expressed 


305  Defined  and  Illitstrated  so 

or  implied.  When  the  standard  of  comparison  is  neither  ex- 
pressed nor  implied  in  language,  but  understood  from  mutual 
knowledge  of  facts,  so  is  simply  an  adverb  and  not  a  connective ; 
as,  it  is  a  mistake  to  wait  so  long  [i.  e. ,  as  we  both  know  you 
are  doing] . 

1.  To  this  or  that  or  such  a  degree ;  to  this  or  that  extent;  in 
the  same  degree,  quantity,  or  proportion :  followed  or  preceded 
by  a  dependent  clause  introduced  by  as,  that,  or  (after  a  negative) 
but ;  as,  he  was  so  unlucky  as  to  fall ;  as  they  were  commanded, 
so  they  did ;  they  are  not  so  weak  hut  they  can  fight. 

[Note. — In  many  cases  it  is  difficult  to  decide  whether  so  in 
such  use  is  a  conjunction  or  an  adverb  in  conjunctive  use. 
Compare  Correlative  Conjunctions,  p.  270.] 

My  circumstances 
Being  so  near  the  truth  as  I  will  make  them, 
Must  first  induce  you  to  believe. 

Shakespeare  Cymbeline  act  ii,  sc.  4,  1.  62. 

I  know  a  falcon  swift  and  peerless 

As  e'er  was  cradled  in  the  pine ; 
No  bird  had  ever  eye  so  fearless, 

Or  wing  so  strong  as  this  of  mine. 

Lowell  The  Falcon. 

By  adroit  movements,  detachments  of  the  American  army 
so  intercepted  Clinton's  march,  as  to  compel  him  to  change  his 
course.  Lossing  United  States  fifth  period,  ch.  5,  p.  287. 

There  is  no  audience  so  hard  to  face  as  one  of  school-children. 
Eggleston  Hoosier  School-Master  ch.  1,  p.  20. 

Who  would  hold  the  order  of  the  almanac  so  fast  but  for  the 
ding-dong  *  Thirty  days  hath  September,'  etc. 

Emerson  Letters  and  Social  Aims,  Poetry  p.  48. 

Factions  do  not  so  soon  give  up  either  their  vengeance  or 
their  hopes.      Guizot  France  tr.  by  Black,  vol.  ii,  ch.  23,  p.  290. 

Men  drop  so  fast,  ere  life's  mid  stage  we  tread, 
Few  know  so  many  friends  alive,  as  dead. 

Young  Love  of  Fame  1.  97. 

20 


so 


Relative  or  Conjunctive  Adverbs  306 


So  far  from  being  stationary  and  fixed,  as  it  were,  in  a  hollow 
glass  globe,  at  nearly  equal  distances  from  us,  they  [the  stars] 
are  all  in  rapid  motion,  and  their  distances  vary  enormously. 

J.  N.  LOCKYER  Elements  of  Astron.  int.,  art.  viii,  p.  11. 

'Tis  pity  a  man  should  be  so  weak  and  languishing,  that  he 
can't  even  wish.  Montaigne  Works  tr.  by  Hazlitt  Of  Experi- 
ence in  vol.  iii,  bk.  iii,  ch.  13,  p.  429. 

So  universal  is  the  action  of  capillarity,  that  solids  and  liquids 
cannot  touch  one  another  without  producing  a  change  in  the 
form  of  the  surface  of  the  liquid. 

Mary  Somerville  Connection  of  Phys.  Sciences  §  14,  p.  110. 

Such  dupes  are  men  to  custom,  and  so  prone 
To  rev'rence  what  is  ancient,  and  can  plead 
A  course  of  long  observance  for  its  use, 
That  even  servitude,  the  worst  of  ills, 
Because  delivered  down  from  sire  to  son. 
Is  kept  and  guarded  as  a  sacred  thing  ! 

COWPER  Task  bk.  v,  1.  298. 

2.  In  this,  that,  or  such  a  manner  (as  stated  or  implied) :  often 
following  a  clause  beginning  with  as,  or  preceding  a  clause 
beginning  with  that ;  as,  so  act  that  the  event  will  justify  it ;  as 
it  had  been  predicted,  so  it  came  to  pass. 

And  being  fed  by  us  you  used  us  so 
As  that  ungentle  gull,  the  cuckoo's  bird, 
Useth  the  sparrow. 

Shakespeare  1  K.  Henry  TV.  act  v,  sc.  1,  1.  59. 

So  shows  a  snowy  dove  trooping  with  crows. 

Shakespeare  Romeo  and  Juliet  act  i,  sc.  5,  1.  50. 

O,  such  a  day. 
So  fought,  so  follow'd  and  so  fairly  won. 

Shakespeare  £  K.  Henry  IV.  act  i,  sc.  1, 1.  20. 

So  the  struck  eagle,  stretched  upon  the  plain. 
No  more  through  rolling  clouds  to  soar  again, 
Viewed  his  own  feather  on  the  fatal  dart. 
And  wing'd  the  shaft  that  quivered  in  his  heart. 

Byron  English  Bards  and  Scotch  Reviewers  1.  826. 


307  Defined  and  Illustrated  then 

So  let  the  hills  of  doubt  divide, 

So  bridge  with  faith  the  sunless  tide ! 

Whittier  The  River  Path  st.  19. 

Curses,  like  chickens,  come  home  to  roost ;  and  so  do  Falsi- 
ties !  Geikie  Entering  on  Life,  Character  p.  55. 

All  the  columns  [in  the  Doric  order]  slope  slightly  inward, 
so  as  to  give  an  idea  of  strength  and  support  to  the  whole. 

James  Fergusson  Hist.  Arch.  vol.  i,  pt.  i,  bk.  iii,  ch.  2,  p.  251. 

3,  Just  as  said,  implied,  or  directed ;  according  to  a  fact  or 
facts  stated  or  implied;  accordingly;  as,  he  asked  me  to  give 
him  a  receipt,  and  I  did  so ;  is  it  really  so  9 

I  was  ever  a  fighter,  so — one  fight  more,  the  best  and  the  last! 

Browning  Prospice  1. 13. 

So  warned  by  the  wolf  in  his  own  fold  this  shepherd  of  souls 
tried  to  keep  his  flock  from  harm. 

Louisa  M.  Alcott  Silver  Pitchers  ch.  6,  p.  40. 

4,  For  this  or  that  reason;  consequently;  therefore:  often 
preceded  by  and ;  as,  the  business  did  not  pay,  so  he  gave  it  up. 

People  did  not  understand  him ;  so  they  said  he  was  a  doubt- 
ful sort  of  a  man  and  passed  by  on  the  other  side. 

Kipling  Plain  Tales,  Miss  YoughaVs  Sais  p.  30. 

5,  According  to  the  truth  of  what  is  sworn  to  or  affirmed: 
a  limiting  clause  introduced  by  as  being  often  expressed  or  im- 
plied; as,  .so  help  me  God  {i.  e.,  May  God  so  help  me  as  what  I 
speak  is  true). 

So  help  me  every  spirit  sanctified, 
As  I  have  spoken  for  you  all  my  best, 
And  stood  within  the  blank  of  his  displeasure. 
For  my  free  speech. 

Shakespeare  Othello  act  iii,  sc.  4, 1. 130. 

THEN 

See  then  under  Conjunctions. 

1.  At  that  time  (expressed  or  implied) ;  as,  if  I  am  here  next 
year,  how  will  it  be  then  ? 


thence        RELATIVE  OR  CONJUNCTIVE  ADVERBS  30§ 

Then  none  was  for  a  partv  — 

Then  all  were  for  the  state ; 
Then  the  great  man  helped  the  poor, 

And  the  poor  man  loved  the  great ; 
Then  lands  were  fairly  portioned ! 

Then  spoils  were  fairly  sold : 
The  Romans  were  like  brothers 

In  the  brave  days  of  old. 

Macaulay  Horatius  st.  22. 

2.  Next  or  immediately  afterward;  later;  next;  after^/ard: 
often  with  indication  of  result  or  consequence  (compare  jhen, 
conjunction) ;  as,  first  came  the  police,  then  the  military ;  he  neg- 
lected his  work,  and  then  lost  his  place. 

Go  then  merrily  to  Heaven. 

Burton  Anatomy  of  Melancholy  pt.  ii,  sec.  3,  memb.  1. 

Work  first,  and  then  rest. 
RusKiN  Seven  Lamps  of  Architecture,  The  Lamp  of  Beauty. 

You  bring  up  your  girls  as  if  they  were  meant  for  sideboard 
ornaments,  and  then  complain  of  their  frivolity. 

RusKiN  Sesame  and  Lilies,  Of  Queens'  Gardens  p.  103. 

We  let  our  blessings  get  mouldy,  and  then  call  them  curses. 
H.  W.  Beecher  in  Life  Thoughts  p.  25. 

3,  At  another  time :  used  as  a  correlative,  following  now,  at 
first,  at  one  time,  etc. ;  as,  noic  one  was  ahead,  then  the  other. 
Compare  Correlative  Conjunctions. 

Sometime  like  apes,  that  moe  and  chatter  at  me. 
And  after,  bite  me ;  then  like  hedge-hogs,  which 
Lie  tumbling  in  my  bare-foot  way. 

Shakespeare  The  Tempest  act  ii,  sc.  2,  1.  10. 

THEl^CE 

Thence,  from  Middle  English  thennes,  Anglo-Saxon  thanan, 
primarily  an  adverb  of  place,  has  connective  force  by  referring 
to  some  place,  time,  source,  reason,  etc.,  expressed  or  implied  in 
the  immediate  context.     Compare  hence  and  whence. 


309  DEFINED  AND  ILLUSTRATED      tbcncefortli 

1.  Of  place:  from  that  place;  as,  he  went  to  the  market,  and 
thence  to  the  office. 

Sitting  on  a  bank, 
Weeping  again  the  king  my  father's  wreck, 
This  music  crept  by  me  upon  the  waters, 
Allaying  both  my  fnry  and  their  passion. 
With  its  sweet  air:  thence  I  have  follow'd  it. 
Or  it  hath  drawn  me  rather. 

Shakespeare  The  Tempest  act  i,  sc.  2, 1.  894. 

a,  Of  time:  from  that  time;  after  that  time;  thereafter:  a 
usage  that  is  now  somewhat  rare;  as,  "this  continued  till  the 
fall  of  the  Roman  Empire:  thence  many  centuries  elapsed,"  etc. 

3.  Of  origin,  source,  reason,  etc. :  from  the  circumstance, 
fact,  or  cause  that;  by  reason  of  that;  on  that  ground;  there- 
fore ;  as,  all  the  shutters  were  closed — thence  I  inferred  that  the 
house  was  unoccupied. 

[Note.— Since  thence  includes  the  meaning  of  froniy  the  ex- 
pression from  thence  is  pleonastic,  though  used  by  good  writers.] 

The  poet  is  poet  only  because  he  is  more  finely  strung  than 
other  men,  and  thence  more  capable  of  the  heart's  music. 

G.  H.  Calvert  Goethe  p.  140. 

THEIVCEFORTH,  THENCEFORWARD 

Thenceforth  and  thenceforward,  self -explaining  compounds, 
are  emphatic  extensions  of  thence ;  thenceforth  applying  only  to 
time,  thenceforward  referring  both  to  place  and  time. 

WHEN 

When,  from  Anglo-Saxon  htocenne,  is  primarily  an  interroga- 
tive adverb,  asking  the  question  ''at  what  time?"  as,  when  will 
you  come  ?  By  changing  the  question  to  the  indirect  form,  the 
adverb  when  acta  as  a  relative  with  connective  force;  as,  please 
inform  me  when  [i.  e.,  at  what  time]  you  will  come.  See  also 
WHEN  under  Conjunctions. 


whence     RELATIVE  OR  CONJUNCTIVE  ADVERBS  310 

Who  gave  thee,  O  Beanty, 

The  keys  of  this  breast, — 
Too  credulous  lover 

Of  blest  and  unblest  ? 
Say,  when  in  lapsed  ages 

Thee  knew  I  of  old? 
Or  what  was  the  service 

For  which  I  was  sold  ? 

Emerson  Ode  to  Beauty  st.  1. 

We  must  know  when  to  spare  and  when  to  spend. 

Julia  McN.  Wright  Complete  Home  ch.  14,  p.  406. 

IVftEJVCE 

Whence^  from  Middle  English  whennes,  adverbial  genitive  of 
whenne,  when,  is  primarily  an  interrogative  adverb  of  place, 
correlative  in  meaning  to  the  demonstrative  thence.  (Compare 
HENCE  and  THENCE. )  Like  other  interrogative  adverbs,  whence 
acquires  relative  and  conjunctive  uses  through  its  employment 
as  an  interrogative  in  indirect  questions,  "  Whence  did  you 
come  ?"  being  converted  into  "  Tell  me  whence  you  came." 

1.  In  interrogative,  passing  into  relative  or  conjunctive  use: 
from  what  or  which  place,  origin,  or  source ;  as,  no  one  knew 
whence  he  came ;  it  is  uncertain  whence  the  word  is  derived 

The  boy  stood  on  the  burning  deck. 

Whence  all  but  he  had  fled ; 
The  flame  that  lit  the  battle's  wreck 

Shone  round  him  o'er  the  dead. 

Mrs.  Hemans  Casabianca. 

Whence  is  yonder  flower  so  strangely  bright  ? 

Would  the  sunset's  last  reflected  shine 
Flame  so  red  from  that  dead  flush  of  light  ? 

Dark  with  passion  is  its  lifted  line, 
Hot,  alive,  amid  the  falling  night. 

Dora  Read  Goodale  Oardinal  Flower. 

2.  Of  logical  connection:  for  which  cause  or  reason;  where- 
fore ;  therefore ;  as,  these  are  the  facts,  whence  I  conclude,  etc. 


311  Defined  and  Illustrated  wiieiicesoever 

[Note. — From  whence  is  pleonastic,  since  the  meaning  of 
from  is  included  in  whence,  yet  the  expression  from  whence  is 
used  by  good  writers,  including  Shakespeare  and  Milton. 

More  should  I  question  thee  .  .  .  from  whence  thou  earnest. 
Shakespeare  AlVs  Well  That  Ends  Well  act  ii,  sc.  1,  1.  210.] 

WHENCE  SOE  YE  R 

Whencesoever,  with  distributive  force,  signifying  from  what- 
ever place,  source,  or  cause,  is  in  approved  use,  but,  like  all 
cumbrous  forms,  is  now  becoming  rare. 

It  is  my  son,  young  Harry  Percy, 
Sent  from  my  brother  Worcester,  whencesoever. 

Shakespeare  K.  Richard  II.  act  ii,  sc.  3, 1.  22. 

WHENEVER  (WHENE'ER) 

Whenever,  a  self -explaining  compound,  extends  distributively 
the  meaning  of  when,  signifying  at  whatever  time ;  as,  I  retire 
early  whenever  I  can.  Whene'er  is  an  abbreviated  and  poetic 
form  of  whenever. 

It  seems  that  it  was  no  part  of  Hannibal's  plan  to  engage  the 
Romans  whenever  he  might  meet  with  them. 

Chas.  Merivale  Borne  ch.  20.  p.  158. 

WHENSOEVER 

Whensoever,  an  extended  form  of  whenever,  with  practically 
the  same  meaning,  has  now  passed  almost  out  of  use,  giving 
place  to  the  shorter  form.  The  Standard  Dictionary  terms  this 
expression  "  formal  and  slightly  emphatic." 

Blandishments  will  not  fascinate  us,  nor  will  threats  of  a 
'  halter '  intimidate.  For,  under  God,  we  are  determined  that 
wheresoever,  whensoever,  or  howsoever  we  shall  be  called  to 
make  our  exit,  we  will  die  free  men. 

JosiAH  QuiNCY  Observations  on  the  Boston  Port  Bill  1774. 


where        RELATIVE  OR  CONJUNCTIVE  ADVERBS  3ld 

WHERE 

See  WHERE  under  Conjunctions. 

Where  as  an  inten-ogative  in  direct  questions  is  not  a  con- 
nective, but  when  the  question  is  made  indirect  or  dependent, 
the  interrogative  is  used  as  a  connective  with  relative  force. 

1.  At  or  in  what  place,  relation,  or  situation;  as,  do  you 
know  where  your  hat  is  ? 

Tell  me  where  is  fancy  bred, 
Or  in  the  heart  or  in  the  head  ? 
How  begot,  how  nourished  ? 

Reply,  reply. 
It  is  engender'd  in  the  eyes. 
With  gazing  fed ;  and  fancy  dies 
In  the  cradle  where  it  lies. 
Shakespeare  Merchant  of  Venice  act  iii,  sc.  2,  1.  63. 

*  Where  Liberty  is,  there  is  my  Country,*  was  the  sentiment 
of  that  great  Apostle  of  Freedom,  Benjamin  Franklin,  uttered 
during  the  trials  of  the  Revolution. 

Sumner  Works,  Speech,  Nov.  ^,  'S5  in  vol.  iv,  p.  80. 

2.  To  what  or  which  place  or  end ;  whither ;  as,  tell  me  where 
you  are  going. 

He  is  in  heaven,  where  thou  shalt  never  come. 

Shakespeare  K.  Richard  III.  act  i,  sc.  2, 1. 106. 

She  stooped  where  the  cool  spring  bubbled  up. 

Whittier  Maud  Muller  st.  10. 

Go  where  glory  waits  thee ; 
But  while  fame  elates  thee. 
Oh !  still  remember  me. 

Moore  Go  Where  Glory  Waits  Thee. 

I  go  .  .  .  where  wild  men  howl  around 

Their  blood-stained  altars — to  uplift  th'  unknown 

Unawf  ul  Crucifix. 

H.  H.  MiLMAN  Anne  Boleyn  so.  3,  st.  21. 

3.  From  what  place ;  whence ;  as,  I  wish  to  know  where  he 
got  that  money. 


313  Defined  and  Illustrated  wby 

Dien  de  battailes !  where  have  they  this  mettle  ? 

Shakespeare  K.  Henry  V.  act  iii,  sc.  5,  1.  15. 

[Note. — Where  has  taken  the  meanings  of  whence  and 
ivhither,  words  once  common,  but  which  have  now  practically 
disappeared  from  ordinary  use,  being  found  only  in  the  literary 
style. 

The  meanings  of  at  and  to  are  included  in  where,  so  that  the 
expressions  **  Where  is  he  at?''  and  "  Where  are  you  going  to 9" 
are  inelegant.  While  the  meaning  of  from  is  sometimes  in- 
cluded in  where  (as  in  definition  3,  above),  yet  such  inclusion  is 
neither  uniform  nor  certain,  so  that  the  question  **  Where  do 
you  come?"  would  not  be  understood  as  meaning  ''Whence 
[from  what  place]  do  you  come  ? "  Hence  it  is  both  common 
and  allowable  to  use  from  with  where,  and  we  may  ask,  ''Where 
do  you  come  from  9  "] 

For  compounds  of  where  see  Conjunctions. 

IVHITHER 

Whither,  from  Anglo-Saxon  hwider,  is  primarily  an  inter- 
rogative, signifying  to  which  or  what  place.  Thence  it  comes  to 
have  the  force  of  a  relative,  the  direct  question,  **  Whither  are 
you  going  ?  "  passing  into  the  indirect,  "  Tell  me  whither  you  are 
going."  The  excellent  word  whither  is  unfortunately  in  modem 
popular  usage  almost  completely  displaced  by  where. 

And  they  drew  nigh  unto  the  village  whither  they  went. 

Luke  xxiv,  28. 

Whither  gains  distributive  force  in  the  extended  form  whith- 
ersoever, meaning  to  whatever  place,  direction,  etc.,  but  this 
latter  form  is  altogether  archaic. 

WHY 

Why,  from  Anglo-Saxon  hwl,  as  an  interrogative  adverb, 
asking  for  a  reason,  becomes  a  connective  in  a  dependent  ques- 
tion, "Why  did  you  do  it ? "  passing  into  *'  Tell  me  why  you  did 
it."    See  WHY  under  Conjunctions. 


ABDENDA 

Introductory  Particles 

It^There 

The  pronoun  and  the  adverb  here  associated  are  used  quite 
apart  from  their  ordinary  meaning  in  introducing  a  clause  or 
sentence.  When  we  say,  '^It  is  a  fine  day,"  we  do  not  think  of 
any  special  antecedent  of  the  pronoun  "it,"  and  when  we  say, 
**  Tliere  is  money  enough  in  the  bank,"  we  do  not  think  of  the 
particular  location  of  that  *'  money."  The  **it"  and  *'  there"  are 
used  in  such  cases  like  the  algebraic  x  or  y  simply  to  fill  the  place 
of  some  quantity  not  exactly  specified,  but  to  be  supplied  later. 
In  such  expressions  as  '^  It  is  pleasant  weather,"  '*  /if  is  I,"  the 
"it"  simply  holds  the  thought  in  expectancy  for  the  coming 
predicate.  In  such  expressions  as  "  /Hs  time  to  go,"  '*  It  rains," 
the  "it"  serves  the  same  purpose. 

In  the  phrase  "  there  is,"  the  word  "  there  "  is  so  independent 
of  local  suggestion  that  a  local  adverb,  as  "here"  or  another 
"there,"  may  be  added  to  give  the  local  meaning  which  the  intro- 
ductory "there  "fails  to  express,  and  we  may  say,  **  There  is 
material  here,'^  or  "  There  is  a  gate  there^  the  final  adverb  keep- 
ing the  local  meaning  which  the  introductory  adverb  has  lost. 
The  introductory  "there"  is  more  slightly  pronounced  than 
"  there"  denoting  location. 

There  is  a  lad  here,  which  hath  five  barley  loaves  and  two 
small  fishes.  John  vi,  9. 

In  interrogations  the  sentence  may  be  inverted,  so  that  the  "  it " 
or  "  there"  will  follow  its  verb,  just  as  a  subject  noun  might  do, 
but  yet  keep  the  same  essential  relation  as  when  used  in  introdu- 
cing the  clause  or  sentence  ;  as,  "  Does  it  rain  ?  "  "Is  there  time  ?" 

(316) 


it-tliere  ADDENDA  316 

Breathes  there  the  man,  with  soul  so  dead, 
"Who  never  to  himself  hath  said, 
This  is  my  own.  my  native  land  I 

Scott  Lay  of  Last  Minstrel  can.  6,  st.  1. 

Sometimes  the  introductory  **  it"  stands  as  the  equivalent  of  a 
whole  clause  or  phrase,  as  an  infinitive  with  its  adjuncts  or  the 
like;  as,  "When  ,  .  ,  it  becomes  necessary  for  one  people  to 
sever  the  bonds  which  have  bound  them  to  another,"  etc.;  that  is, 
*'  When  ...  to  sever  the  bonds,"  etc.,  *•  becomes  necessary,"  etc. 
But  the  latter  expression  seems  stiff  and  forced,  while  that  with 
the  introductory  ** it"  is  flovring  and  easy,  the  *'  it"  serving  as  an 
usher  to  direct  the  mind  to  the  principal  thought.  These  two 
introductory  particles,  "it"  and  "there,"  have  much  to  do  with 
the  coherence  and  ease  of  English  speech. 


INDEX 


Abaft 12 

Abate,  followed  by  iw 109 

Aboard 13 

"       onboard 129 

About 14 

*'      antecedents  of 19 

♦*      distinctions 19,  136 

"      verbs  followed  by 19 

Above 21 

"      distinctions 24 

Absolve,  followed  by  frcmi 100 

Abstain,  followed  by  from 100 

Accord,  followed  by  with 188 

Accordant,  followed  by  with 189 

According,  followed  by  to 169 

Accuse,  followed  by  of 124 

Acquaint,  followed  byof. 124 

"        foWowed  by  with :^88 

Acquit,  followed  byof 123 

Across 25 

"      distinctions 26 

Act,  followed  by  for 95 

Adapt,  followed  by  to 169 

Addenda 315,  316 

Address,  followed  by  to 168 

Adhere,  followed  by  to 168 

Adjacent,  followed  by  to 169 

Adjectives,  followed  by  ahout 19 

"          followed  by  for 95 

♦•         followed  by /Tvm 100 

"          followed  by  o/* 124 

"          followed  by  on 136 

"         followed  by  to 169 

followed  by  with 189 

Adjoining,  followed  by  to 169 

Admit,  followed  by  of 124 

Admonish,  followed  oy  of 124 

Adown 27 

Advance,  followed  by  in 109 

Adverbs vii 

"•       conjunctive 299 

*'       following  prepositions 7 

"       prepositions  originally 7 

'*       relative 299 

Advertise,  followed  byof. 124 

Advise,  followed  by  of 124 

Afraid,  followed  byof 124 

After 27 

"     distinctions 31 

Against 32 

"       distinctions 36 

Agree,  followed  by  to 169 

"■      foUowed  by  with 188 

Agreeable,  followed  by  to 169 

Agreement,  followed  by  with. .......  189 

Aim,  followed  by  at 57 

Alien,  followed  by  from 100 

Alienate,  followed  by  from 100 


All  of lis 

Allow,  followed  byof. 1^ 

Ally,  followed  by  to 168 

"     followed  by  wi^A 188 

Along 37 

"     distinctions 26,  38 

Also  197 

Alter,  followed  by  to 169 

Although 198,  268 

^'       distinctions 2:i4 

—yet 267 

Ambitious,  followed  by  of 124 

Amid : . .  39 

"     distinctions 40 

Amidst 39 

Among 43 

"      distinctions 40 

Amongst 43 

And 199 

"    distinctions 208 

"    in  phrases  like  com£  and  see. . .  206 

"    not  equivalent  t^  to 206 

'*    all 200 

Anger,  followed  by  about 19 

Angry,  followed  by  about 19 

'*       followed  by  a^ 19 

Antecedents  of  ofioMi 19 

"           *'  after. 31 

''at 57 

"  6y 84 

''for 95 

"from 99 

"  in 108 

"           "  into 113 

"of 122 

"           "on 136 

"           "  preposition 3,4 

"  to 168 

"           "  with 188 

Anxiety,  followed  by  about 19 

Anxious,  followed  by  about 19 

Appeal,  followed  by  to 168 

Append,  followed  by  to 168 

Apprehensive,  followed  by  of 125 

Approve,  followed  by  of 124 

Argue,  follow  ed  by  for 95 

"     followed  by  wi^/i 189 

Around 46 

"       distinctions 19 

Arrest,  followed  by  of 124 

As  (conj.) 208 

"  (correl.  conj.) 267-68 

"  —as,  as— so 267 

"  distinctions 212,  223 

"  (rel.  pron.) 275 

Ashamed,  followed  byof. 124 

Ask,  followed  by  abokct 19 

"    followed  by  a/lf^r 31 

(317) 


Index 


318 


Ask,  followed  hy  for 

....    95 

Bring,  followed  hy  to 

....  168 

''    followed  by  0/ 

....  123 
47 

"      <o  omitted  after 

158 

Aslant 

Build,  followed  hy  of 

123 

Assure,  followed  by  of. 

....  124 
....    48 

Burn,  followed  hy  to 

169 

At) ..•,•..•..•,.,.•,,    ••••••••••• 

Burst,  followed  by  into 

113 

''  all 

....    57 

But  (conj.) 

214 

"  distinctions 

.55,  109 
....    58 

"  distinctions 77, 

208,  234 

Athwart , 

''  (prep.) 

By 

"distinctions 36,  38, 

7G 

At  last 

. . . .    56 

77 

At  length 

....    56 

125,  189 

Attach,  followed  hy  to 

....  168 

Byron,  use  of  prepositions  by. . , 

....     10 

Attempt,  lollowed  by  a^ 

Attend,  followed  by  ow 

Attendant,  followed  by  ow 

....    57 

Calculate,  followed  by  o^i 

....  136 

....  136  • 
....  136 

Call,  followed  by  after 

31 

"     fo' lowed  by  fty 

....    84 

Attended,  followed  by  6?/ 

....    85 
....    85 

"     followed  by  on 

136 

followed  by  u'i^A 

"     followed  by  ^0 

....  lt)8 

Attentive,  followed  by  ^o 

....  125 
....  124 
....  124 

Can  but 

215 

Angur,  followed  by  of 

Avail,  followed  by  (/ 

Can  not  but. 

215 

Capable,  followed  hy  of 

....  124 

Avaricious,  followed  hy  of 

....  124 
....  124 
....  123 

Care,  followed  by  about 

19 

Aware,  followed  hy  of 

"     followed  by  fo?" 

....     95 

Balk,  followed  hy  of 

Careful,  followed  by  of 

....  124 

Barrini; 

. . . .     60 

Careless,  followed  hy  of 

Carry,  followed  by  ^o 

124 

Base,  followed  hy  on 

....  113 

....  168 

Bask,  followed  by  a^ 

....    57 

Catch,  followed  hy  at 

....    57 

Baling 

....     60 

Cease,  followed  hy  from. 

....  100 

Batten,  followed  by  on 

....  136 

Certain,  followed  hy  of 

124 

Be,  followed  hy  of ^ . . . 

....  123 

Chain,  followed  by  ^o 

....  168 

Bear,  followed  by  ^o 

....  1G8 

Change,  followed  hy  to 

....  169 

Because 

....  212 

Charge,  followed  by  o;z 

....  136 

"       distinctions 

....  223 

Cheat,  followed  hy  of 

....  123 

Become,  followed  hy  from 

....  100 

Chillon,  prisoner  of 

....     10 

Before 

....     60 

Circumstances,  with  under  or  in 

....  173 

"      distinctions 

36,  220 

Cleanse,  followed  hy  of 

Clear,  followed  by  jfrom 

123 

Beg,  followed  hy  for 

....     95 

....  100 

*'    followed  by  o/". 

....  123 

"    followed  by  0/. 

....  123 

Behind 

....     62 

Cleave,  followed  hy  to 

....  108 

'*       distinctions 

....     31 

Cling,  followed  hy  to 

....  168 

Believe,  followed  hy  in 

....  136 

Close,  followed  hy  to 

....  169 

"       followed  by  ow 

....  136 

Combat,  followed  by  with 

....  189 

Below 

....     64 

Combine,  followed  by  with 

....  188 

"      distinctions 

. . , .     67 

....  168 

Come,  followed  hy  at 

57 

Bend,  followed  hy  to 

"      followed  by  0/ 

....  123 

Beneath 

....     65 

"      followed  by  ^0 

....  168 

"       distinctions 

....    67 
....  123 

'*      and  see 

206 

Bereave,  followed  hy  of 

Complain,  followed  by  about.,. . 

....     19 

Beseech,  followed  hy  of 

....  123 

"         followed  hy  of 

....  124 

Beside 

....     68 

"         followed  by  ^0 

....  168 

"     distinctions 

....     38 

ComT'laint,  followed  by  about.. . 

....     19 

Besides 

. .70,  77 

Compose,  followed  hy  of 

....  123 

Bestow,  followed  hy  on 

....  136 

Conceal,  followed  hy  from 

....  100 

Bet,  followed  hy  on 

....  136 

Concerning 

....  143 

Between 

. . . .    71 

Concord,  followed  by  with 

Concur,  followed  by  with 

....  189 

"        di^^tinctions 

74 

j88 

Betwixt  .          

74 

Conducive,  followed  by  ^o 

125 

"       distinctions 

....     74 

Confer,  followed  by  on 

....  136 

Beware,  followed  hy  of 

....  124 

"       followed  by  ^^^^;/i 

....  188 

Beyond 

....    75 

Confident,  folio  wee .  by  r/. 

....  124 

Bind,  followed  by  to 

....  168 

Conflict,  followed  bv  with 

Conform,  followed  hy  to 

....  189 

Blend,  followed  hy  into 

....  113 

....  169 

Boast,  followed  hs  of 

....  124 

Confuso,  followed  by  with 

....  188 

Borrow,  followed  hy  from  or  of. 
Both 

99 

('oiit'eul  followed  by  to 

169 

214,  268 

Cong'-nial,  followed*  by  to 

....  169 

"  — and 

....  267 

Conj')in,  followed  by  ivith 

....  188 

Bow,  followed  by  to 

....  168 

Conjunctions 

.vii,  195 

Brng,  followed  by  o/*.  

....  124 

*'           correlative 

.197,  2C7 

Break  followed  bv  into 

113 

*'           list  of 

....  197 

"      followed  bv  q/" 

Breathe,  followed  hy  of 

123 

Coniunctive  adverbs.. 

....  299 

;;.*;  124 

Connect,  followed  by  with 

....  188 

819 


Index 


Connectives  defined vii 

"•  importance  of viii 

Conscious,  followed  hjof. 124 

Consent,  followed  hy  to 169 

Cousiderate,  followed  by  of 124 

Considering 143 

Consist,  followed  hy  in 113 

in— of 125 

Consort,  followed  by  with 188 

Construct,  followed  hy  of 123 

Consult,  followed  by  about 19 

''       followed  by  with 188 

Contend,  followed  by  about 19 

followed  by  with 189 

Content,  followed  by  with 189 

Contented,  followed  by  with 189 

Contention,  followed  by  about 19 

followed  by  iti/A 189 

Contentious,  followed  by  about 19 

Contents v 

Contiguous,  followed  hy  to 169 

Contract,  followed  by  ^o 169 

Convict,  followed  hy  of 124 

Convince,  followi  dhy  of. 124 

Correlative  conjunctions 197,  267 

Correspond,  followed  by  to  or  with..    95 

Count,  followed  by  ow 186 

Cover,  followed  hy  from 100 

Crave,  followed  hy  of 123 

Create,  followed  hy  of 123 

Crowd,  followed  by  on 136 

Cruel,  followed  hy  to 169 

Curb,  followed  hy  from 100 

Cure,  followed  hy  of 123 

Dance,  followed  hy  to 169 

Dead,  followed  hy  of 124 

Dear,  followed  b v  ^o 169 

Debate,  followed  by  with 189 

Declaration  of  Independence , .  vii 

Decline,  followed  hy  from 100 

Defend,  ft>lloaed  by  from 100 

Defraud,  followed  h\  of 123 

Delightful,  followed  by  to 169 

Deliver,  followed  hy  from 100,  123 

followed  by  0/" 123 

Demand,  followed  hvfrom 100 

''        followed  by  0/ 123 

Depend,  followed  hy  on 136 

Dependent,  followed  by  o?i 136 

Deprive,  followed  hy  of 123 

Descend,  followed  hy  of 123 

Descriptive,  followed  hy  of 125 

Deserve,  followed  hy  of 123 

Desire,  followed  hy  from 100 

"       followed  by  0^ 123 

Desirous,  followed  hy  of 124 

Desist,  followed  hy  from 100 

Despair,  followed  hy  of 123 

Despite 86 

Destructive,  followed  hy  of 125 

Det-  r,  followed  hy  from 100 

Detract,  followed  hy  from 100 

Deviate,  followed  hy  from 100 

Die,  followed  hy  of..... 124 

Differ,  followed  by  from  or  with 

90,  10',  188 

Different,  followed  hy  from 99,  100 

Diminish,  followed  hy  to 169 

Disagree,  followed  by  with 188 


Disagreeable,  followed  hy  to 169 

Disappoint,  followed  hy  of 123 

Disarm,  followed  hy  of 123 

Disburden,  followed  hy  of 123 

Discharge,  followed  hy  of 123 

Discontented,  followed  by  with 189 

Discourage,  followed  hy  from 100 

Discuss,  followed  by  with 189 

Disjoin,  followed  by  from 100 

Dispense,  followed  by  with 188 

Displeased,  followed  by  with 189 

Dispose,  followed  hy  of 124 

Dispossess,  followed  hy  of 123 

Dispute,  followed  by  with 189 

Dissatistied,  followed  by  with 189 

Dissent,  followed  hy  from 100,  188 

Dissuade,  followed  hy  from.  100 

Distinctions,  about 19 

*'  above 24 

"  across 26 

after 31 

"  against 36,  101 

"  along 38 

"  although,  QIC 234 

"  amid 40 

"  an— and— if 228 

and-but 208 

"  as— because— for— since  223 

"  as-like 212 

at 55 

"  before— e'er— ere 220 

"  beneath 67 

"  between 74 

but 77 

by— with 189 

fm-.: 95 

from 101 

m 109 

"  lest— that 2;30 

of 125 

on 136 

"  (yver 24,27 

"  when— while 255 

Distinguish,  followed  hy  from 100 

Distrustful,  followed  hy  of 124 

Disturb  (oneself),  followed  by  about.    19 

"       followed  hy  from 100 

Disturbance,  followed  by  about 19 

Disturbed,  followed  by  about 19 

"         followed  by  a^ 19 

"  followed  by  6y 19 

Divert,  followed  hy  from 100 

Divest,  followed  by  ^ 123 

Divide,  followed  hyf.om 100 

Divorce,  followed  hyf.om 100 

Down 86 

"     distinctions 67 

Drag,  followed  hy  to 108 

Drain,  followed  hy  of 123 

Draw,  followed  hy  to 168 

Dream,  followed  hy  of 124 

During 87,  143 

''     distinctions 95 

Eager,  followed  hy  for 124 

•'      followed  by  0/' 124 

Ease,  followed  hy  of 123 

Echo,  followed  hy  to 169 

K'er,  distinctions 220 

Either 219,268 


Index 


820 


Either — or 

...  267 

Forgetful,  followed  by  of 

Form,  followed  by  of 

....  124 

Euamored,  followed  by  of. 

...  124 

123 

Endeavor,  followed  by  after 

...    31 

Frame,  followed  by  of 

....  123 

"         followed  by  a^ 

...    57 

Free,  followed  by  from 

....  100 

Engage,  followed  by  iw 

...  109 

"     followed  by  0/. 

....  124 

English,  cases  ui 

...      2 

Freeze,  followed  by  to 

Fret,  followed  by  about 

169 

**       order  of  words  in 

...      1 

....     19 

Enjoin,  followed  by  on 

Enquire,  followed  hjfrom 

...  136 
...100 

From 

96 

"    distinctions 

....  125 

Entail,  followed  by  on 

Entreat,  followed  bv  o^ 

...136 

"    indicating  means 

Fuse,  followed  by  with 

....  101 

...  123 

....  188 

Envious,  followed  iJy  of 

Equal,  followed  by  in 

...124 

Gape,  followed  by  after 

....    31 

...  108 

Get,  followed  by  from  or  of.... 

....     99 

"      followed  by  to 

...  169 

Give,  to  omitted  al  ter 

....  158 

Equivalent,  followed  by  to 

...  169 

Glad,  followed  by  of 

.124,  125 

Ere  (conj.) 

"   distinctions 

...220 

Glue,  followed  by  to 

....  168 

...  220 

Go,  followed  by  to 

Good,  followed  by  to 

....  168 

Errors,  between , . 

...    88 

....  169 

...     74 

Goold  Brown  (quoted) 

...3,4,7 

"      bp 

...    85 

Grammar,      English— see      Goold 

;|      from 

...  101 

Brown;     Maetzner;    Ram 

!?ey; 

...     42 

Whitney. 

"      into 

...  113 

Grasp,  followed  by  a^ 

....    57 

"      ojr 

...126 

Gratitication,  followed  by  with. 

189 

"      to  improperly  omitted 

...  159 

Gratified,  followed  by  tvith 

189 

*'      where — at 

...    58 
...100 

Greedy,  followed  by  of 

124 

Estrange,  followed  hjfrom 

Grow,  followed  by  in 

....  109 

Exact,  followed  by  from \ . . . 

Exceed,  followed  by  in 

...    99 

"      followed  by  to 

.168,  169 

...  109 

Guard,  followed  b-  from 

100 

Excel,  followed  hy  in 

...  109 

Guiltless,  followed  by  of 

....  125 

Except,  distinctions 

...    77 

Guilty,  followed  by  of 

Hand,  to  omitted  after 

....  125 

*'      (conj.) 

...  220 

158 

"       (verb),  followed  by  from. 

...     88 

Hang,  followed  by  to .... 

....  168 

...  100 

Harmony,  followed  by  with. . . , 

189 

Excepting 

88,143 

Hasten,  followed  by  at 

....     57 

Exclude,  followed  by  from 

...  100 

"       followed  by  to 

....  168 

Excuse,  followed  by  from 

Exempt,  followed  by  from 

...100 
...100 

Hateful,  followed  by  to 

....  169 

Have,  followed  by  from  or  of. . 
Heal,  followed  by  of 

99 

Expand,  followed  by  to 

...  169 

123 

Expect,  followed  by  of 

Expend,  followed  by  on 

Expressive,  followed  by  of 

...123 

Hear,  followed  by  about 

....     19 

...  136 

"     followed  by /rom 

100 

...  125 

"     followed  by  of 

Heedful,  followed  by  of 

....  124 

Extort,  followed  by  from 

Extricate,  followed  by  from. . .  . 

...     99 

....  124 

...100 

Heedless,  followed  by  of 

124 

Fail,  followed  by  iw 

...  109 

Hence 

....  299 

"    followed  by  qf 

...123 

Henceforth 

Henceforward 

300 

Fall,  followed  by  at 

...    57 

....  JiOO 

*'    followed  by  in 

...109 

Hide,  followed  by  from 

Hinder,  followed  by  from 

....  100 

"    followed  by  into 

...  113 

....  100 

**     followed  by  on  

...136 

Hiss,  followed  by  a^ 

....     57 

"     followed  by  to  

.    .    IfiH 

Hold,  followed  bv  to 

....  168 

Fallows  (quoted). 24, 32, 37, 41, 56, 101, 109 

Honest,  followed* by  to 

169 

False,  followed  by  to 

...   169 

Hope,  followed  by  for 

....     95 

Fasten,  followed  by  to 

...  168 

Hopeless,  followed  by  of 

124 

Fatten,  followed  by  on 

...  136 

Hostile,  followed  by  to. 

....  189 

Fearful,  followed  by  of 

...124 

Hostility,  followed  by  to 

189 

Fearless,  followed  by  of 

...124 

How 

Howbeit,  distinctions 

....  300 

Feed,  followed  by  on 

...  136 

....  234 

Fight,  followed  by  with 

...  189 

However  (adv.) 

.226,303 

Fit,  followed  by  for 

...  125 

"       (conj.) 

....  226 

Fix,  followed  by  to 

...  168 

*'       distinctions 

Hunger,  followed  by  after. . .  . 

....  234 

Flee,  followed  by  to 

Flitich,  followed  by  from 

168 

31 

...100 

Hunt,  followed  by  after 

31 

Follow,  followed  by  after 

...    31 

If 

.226,  268 

Fond,  followed  by  of 

...124 

"  compared  with  unless 

229 

For 

.89,  221 

"  omission  of 

228 

*'  distinctions 32,  36, 

Forasmuch 

95,  223 
...  225 

"—then 

267 

Ignorant,  followed  by  of 

Impatient,  followed  by  of 

....  124 

Forbid,  followed  by  from 

...  100 

134 

821 


Index 


Improve,  followed  by  in 109 

In 102 

''  after  interest 19 

''  distinctions 55,  95,  109 

Incapable,  followed  by  of. 124 

Incorporate,  followed  by  with 188 

Increase,  followed  by  i/i 109 

followed  by  to 169 

Inculcat3,  followed  by  on 136 

Inlicitive,  followed  by q/" 125 

Inditferent,  followed  by  ^o 125,  169 

Induls:ent,  followed  by  of 124 

Infinitive  with  ^0 164 

"        without  to 167 

Inflict,  followed  bv  o;i 136 

Inform,  followed  by  of 124 

Informed,  followed  by  about 19 

Inhibit,  followed  by  from, 100 

Innocent,  followed  by  of 125 

Inquire,  followed  by  about 19 

followed  by  of 1:.'3 

Inquiry,  followed  by  about 19 

InquijKitive,  followed  by  about 19 

In  regard  to 143 

In  respect  to 143 

Insensible,  followed  by  of 124 

Inside 1 1 0 

Instead,  followed  by  (?/* 101 

Instruct,  followed  by  of 124 

Insu^^ceptible,  followed  by  of 124 

Intert^st,  followed  bv  in 19 

Interested,  followed  by  about 19 

"  followed  by  in 19 

Interfere,  followed  by  in 109 

•'        followed  by  with 188 

Intermeddle,  followed  by  with 188 

Intermiugle,  followed  by  with 188 

Intermix,  followed  by  with 188 

Into  110 

"  distinctions 109 

Introdu  tory  particles viii,  315 

Jealous,  followed  by  ^. 124 

Join,  followed  by  in 109 

Judge,  followed  by  by 84 

"      followed  by  of 124 

jFist,  followed  bwto 169 

Keep,  followed  by  from 100 

Kind,  followed  by  to 169 

Kneel,  followed  by  to 168 

Knit,  followed  hy  to 168 

Know,  followed  by  abc    ' 19 

"      followed  hy  by 84 

"      foil  )wed  by /rom 100 

"      followed  by  of 124 

Labor,  followed  by  for 95 

Latham  (cited) 195 

Latin,  cases  in 1 

**      order  of  words  in 1 

Lavish,  followed  by  on 136 

Lead,  followed  by  to 168 

Learn,  followed  by  from 100 

"      followed  by  0/ .»...  124 

Lest 2a0 

'*    distinctions 230 

Lie,  followed  by  to 168 

Lighten,  followed  by  of 123 

Like,  distinctions 212 

"     followed  by  to 169 

*♦     to  omitted  after 158 


Link,  followed  by  to 168 

Listen,  follow  ed  hy  after 31 

Live,  followed  by  on 136 

Long,  followed  by  f(yr 95 

Look,  followed  by  on 136 

Maetzuer  (quoted). .  .7,  29,  31,  46,  48, 

58,65,100.113 

Make,  followed  by  from 100 

"      followed  by  into 113 

**      followed  by  of 123 

Make  war,  followed  by  on 136 

Marry,  followed  by  to 168 

Match,  followed  by  in 108 

Measure,  followed  hy  by 84 

Meddle,  followed  by  in 109 

followed  by  with 10.»,  188 

Meet,  followed  by  with 188 

Melt,  followed  by  to 169 

Merit,  followed  by  of 123 

Mild,  followed  by  to 169 

Mindful,  followed  by  of 124 

Miss,  followed  by  of 123 

Mix,  followed  by  with 188 

Mixture,  followed  by  with 189 

Modifiers,  position  of 3 

Mfjve,  followed  bv  on 136 

Murmur,  followed  by  against 124 

"        followed  by  ai? 124 

followed  \)y  of 134 

Nail,  followed  by  to 168 

Near,  followed  by  to 169 

*'     to  omitted  after 158 

Neglectful,  followed  by  of 124 

Negligent,  followed  by  or. 184 

Neither 231,  268 

"      -nor 367 

Nevertheless 331 

'^  distinctions 284 

No 268 

"  —nor 367 

Nor 332,  267,  268 

Not-nor 267 

"■    with  nor  or  or 270 

Notwithstanding  (conj.) 238 

'*  "    distinctions.  284 

(prep.) 148 

Nouns,  followed  by  about 19 

''      followed  by  a< 68 

"      followed  by /or 95 

"      followed  by  of 125 

"      followed  by  to 169 

"      followed  by  with 189 

Now 303 

''    —then 367 

Obedient,  followed  by  to 169 

Observant,  followed  oy  of 134 

Odious,  followed  by  to 169 

Of 114 

'"  denoting  possession 125 

"  distinctions 125,  136 

Off 126 

Offer,  to  omitted  aftfer 158 

Of  mine,  yours,  etc 119 

On 126 

"  distinctions 24,  109,  136 

Opposed,  followed  by  to 189 

Opposition,  followed  by  to 189 

Or 334,  367,  268 

"after  not 270 


Index 


322 


Or  after  whether 

....  271 

Reach,  followed  hy  for 

Recite,  followed  by  to 

95 

Order  of  words 

....      2 

168 

Or  not,  omitted  after  whether. . . 

....  263 

Reckless,  followed  hy  of 

124 

Out 

....  137 

Reckon,  followed  by  ow 

Recover,  follow'ed  hs  from 

136 

Out  of 

.123,  137 
....  138 

123 

Outside 

followed  by  0/ 

123 

Over 

....  139 
24,  26,  27 
....  100 

Retleem,  followed  by  from 

100 

"    distinctions i 

Reduce,  follow^ed  by  to 

169 

Part,  followed  by  from 

Refrain,  followed  hy  from 

100 

"     followed  by  m 

....  109 

Regard,  in  or  with— to 

143 

''     f oUowed  hy  with 

....  188 

Regarding 

143 

Partial,  followed  by  to 

....  169 

Regardless,  followed  hy  of 

Relate,  followed  by  to 

124 

Participate,  followed  hy  in 

....  109 

168 

Participial  prcposi lions 

Particiules,  tollowed  by  bi/ 

....  143 

Relative,  followed  by  to 

125 

....     ^  5 

"        adverbs 

Relatives 

299 

Particles,  introductory viii, 

315,  310 

..vii,  275 

Pass,  to  omitted  after 

158 

Release,  followed  hy  from 

Relieve,  followed  hy  of 

100 

Past 

....  143 

123 

Patient,  followed  hy  of 

....  124 

Rely,  followed  by  on 

136 

Pending 

....  143 

Remind,  followed  hy  of 

124 

Per 

....  145 

Repeat,  followed  by  to 

168 

Perceive,  followed  hy  by 

....    84 

Repose,  followed  by  on 

136 

Persuade,  followed  hy  of 

....  124 

Request,  followed  hy  of 

123 

Phrase  as  object  of  preposition. 

7 

Require,  followed  hy  of 

123 

Phelps,  Austin  (quoted) 

....      )X 

Rescue,  followed  hyfi^om 

100 

Phrases,  prepositional 

....    11 

Resound,  followed  by  to 

169 

Pin,  followed  hy  to 

....  168 

Respect,  in  or  with— to 

143 

Place,  prepositions  designating. 

8 

Respecting 

143 

Plan,  followed  hy  for 

Pleasant,  followed  hy  to 

....     95 

Rest,  followed  hy  from 

100 

....  169 

"'     followed  by  on 

136 

Pleased,  followed  by  with 

....  189 

Resuscitate,  followed  hy  from. 

100 

Pleasing,  followed  hy  to 

....  169 

Reunite,  followed  by  with 

188 

Pledge,  followed  hy  on 

....  136 

Rid,  followed  hy  from 

100 

Posses-ion,  denoted  hy  of 

125 

"    followed  by  0/" 

Ring,  followed  by 'to 

123 

Pray,  followed  hy  for 

....     95 

109 

"      followed  by  to 

....  168 

Rise,  followed  hy  in 

109 

Preach,  followed  by  to 

....  168 

"     followed  by  to 

168 

Preci<  us,  followed  by  to 

....  lt>9 

Rival,  followed  hy  in 

109 

Preposition,  ending  sentence. . . . 

....      4 

Rivet,  followed  by  to 

168 

"           following  preposition..      8 

Roar,  followed  by  to 

169 

"          governing  adverb.. 

....      8 

Rob,  followed  hy  of 

123 

**          meaning  of  word. . . 

....      4 

Round 

....    46 

Prepositions 

....   vii 

Sacred,  followed  by  to 

169 

''          antecedents  of 

....      4 

Safe  followed  by /7'om 

Sanctify,  followed  hy  from 

100 

"          designating  place.. 

"          government  by 

"          list  of 

....      8 

100 

....      1 

Satisfaction,  followed  by  with. 

189 

11 

Satisfied,  followed  by  with 

Save  (conj.) 

189 

'*          originally  adverbs. 

....      7 

....  236 

Preserve,  followed  hy  from 

....  100 

"     (prep.) 

....  146 

Prey's,  followed  by  on 

....  136 

"     (verb),  followed  by  from. 
"     distinctions 

100 

Prevent,  followed  hy  from 

Privilege,  followed  hy  from. . . . 

....  100 
....  100 

77 

Saving 

.143,  146 

Productive,  followed  hy  of 

....  125 

Say,  followed  by  ^/ 

Screen,  followed  by/rcwi 

Screw,  followed  by  to , . . . 

124 

Prolific,  followed  by  iw 

....  124 

....  100 

"       followed  by  0/ 

....  124 

168 

Pronouns,  followed  hy  of 

....  125 

Search,  followed  by  after 

81 

"         relative 

.vii,  275 
....  169 

Secure,  followed  hyfi^om 

Seduce,  followed  hyfrwn 

100 

Proportionate,  followed  by  to. . . 

100 

Protect,  followed  by  from 

....  100 

See,  followed  by  abmt 

19 

Proud,  fol.owed  hy  of 

....  124 

"    followed  by  by 

84 

Provided 

...  236 

Seeing 

Seek,  followed  by  after 

....  238 

Pull,  followed  by  to 

....  168 

31 

Puige,  followed  by  of 

123 

"     followed  by  ^' 

123 

Push,  f ol  lowed  by  to 

Quarrel,  followed  by  with 

....  168 

Seem,  followed  hy  by 

84 

....  189 

Send,  followed  bv  to 

....  168 

Question,  followed  bv  about. . . . 

....     19 

Sensible,  followed  hy  of 

....  124 

Quiver,  foll(»wed  by  to 

....  169 

Sensitive,  followed  by  to 

125 

Ramsey  (quoted) 

...9,197 

Separate,  followed  hy  from 

.100,  188 

Reach,  followed  by  a^ 

....     57 

Sever,  followed  hy  from 

....  100 

Index 


Shade,  followed  hyfrom 

Shadow,  followed  hy  from 

100 

100 

109 

123 

100 

100 

168 

57 

168 

158 

100 

100 

124 

100 

175 

169 

237 

2-^3 

j46 

32 

124 

168 

109 

168 

124 

.  136 

.     57 

304 

237 

1,  270 

.     19 

.  169 

.      8 

.  136 

.    95 

1,136 

.  136 

.    57 

.  123 

.  169 

.    95 

.  100 

.  169 

.  168 

.  238 

.  2:^4 

.  168 

.  100 

.    57 

.  12:3 

.    95 

.  189 

.     S.5 

.  189 

.  124 

.    95 

.    95 

.  101 

.  101 

.  271 

.  271 

.  168 

.  169 

.  124 

.  109 

.    85 

.  124 

.  124 

100 

Take,  followed  by  by 

..    84 

"      followed  by  from 

..    99 

Sharo,  followed  hy  in 

Shear,  followed  by  of 

Talk,  followed  by  about 

"     followed  by  of 

..    19 
.     124 

Shelter,  followed  by  from 

Shield,  followed  by  from 

Shi^,  followed  by  to 

Shoot  followed  by  at 

"     followed  by  to 

..  168 

Taste,  followed  by  of 

Telegraph,  followed  by  to 

"         to  omitted  after 

Telephone,  followed  by  to 

Tell,  followed  by  of 

*'    followed  by  to 

"    to  omitted  after 

..  124 

..  168 

l.'iS 

Shout,  followed  by  to 

Show,  to  emitted  after 

Shrink,  followed  by  from 

Shut,  roliowed  by  from 

Sif'k,  followed  by  of 

..  168 
..  124 
..  168 
..  158 

Tender,  followed  by  0, '. ." . . 

Than 

..  124 

Sift,  followed  b»'  from 

Signature,  with  under  or  over 

Similar,  followed  by  to 

Since  (conj.) 

"         "     distinctions 

"     (prep.) 

*^         '•      distinctions 

238 

*'    followed  by  nominative 

"    whom 

...  238 
..  242 

That  (conj.) 

..  242 

-     distinctions 

"    (rel.  pron.) 

"       "       "     distinctions....  r. 
Then  (adv.) 

"     (conj.) 

"     (correl.) 

Thence 

Thenceforth ^ 

Thenceforward .* 

Therefore  

Think,  followed  by  about 

..  230 
..  277 
.->  239 

Sing,  followed  by  of 

"     followed  by  ro 

Sink,  followed  by  in 

"     followed  by  to 

..  307 

...246 

...  267 

308 

Smell,  followed  by  of 

Smile  followed  by  on 

..  309 
309 

Snatch,  followed  by  at 

..  24r 

So  (adv.) 

"  (conj.) 

"  (correl.) 267,26^ 

Solicitous,  followed  by  about 

..     19 

"      followed  by /(Or 

"      followed  by  (>/• 

Thirst,  followed  by  after 

...     95 

..  134 

..      31 

Sound,  followed  by  to 

Space,  prepositions  designating — 
Speali,  followed  by  about 

"      followed  by  for 

'*      followed  by  c?/* 124 

"      followed  by /or 

Thither 

...    32 

. ..  267 

Though 

"      distinctions 

"      -yet 

Thought,  followed  bv  about 

Thoughtful,  followed  by  abo-ut... 

''          followed  by  for 

followed  by  of 

Thoughtless,  followed  by  of 

Thrill,  followed  by  to 

Thrive,  followed  by  on 

..  248 
...  234 
...  267 

**      followed  by  on 

...     19 

Spit,  followed  by  a^ 

Spring,  followed  by  of 

*'       followed  by  to 

Stand,  followed  ^^yfor 

Start,  followed  by  from 

Stern,  followed  by  to 

...    19 
...    95 
...124 
...  124 
...  169 
. ..  136 

Stick,  followed  by  to 

StiU 

''  distinctions 

Stoop,  followed  by  to 

Stray,  followed  bvfrom. 

Through 

*'      distinctions 26, 

"      indicating  means 

'*       vs.  from 

...  147 
95,189 
...  101 
...  101 

Throughout 

"         dii^tinctions 

Throw,  followed  by  at. 

...153 

Strike  followed  by  o^ 

95 

Strip,  followed  by  of 

Strive,  f<  .lowed  b  for 

*'      followed  bv  -  -nth 

Stru""gle,  followed  by  fc^.,,. 

. ..    57 

"       followed  by  to 

Tie,  followed  by  to 

..  168 
...168 

Till  (conj.) 

...251 

^'        f olL-) wed  by  \iUh 

Studious,  followed  by  of 

Subscribe,  followed  by  ,j  or  for.... 
Subscription,  followed  by  to  or  for. 

Substitute,  followed  by  for 

Substitution,  followed  by  for 

Such 

Tire,  followed  by  of 

Tired,  followed  by  ^ 

To 

"  of  the  infinitive 

...153 
...  123 
..  124 
...  155 
...164 

"  omission  of 

...158 

"  omitted  after  like 

..  169 

'*    with  08  or  thai 

"    near 

. --  IRQ 

Sue,  followed  by  to 

Suit,  followed  by  to 

Sure,  followed  by  of 

Surpass,  followed  by  in 

""       "       before  infinitive 167 

Toil,  followed  by  for 95 

Touching 143,  169 

Toward 170 

Surrounded,  followed  by  by 

Towards 

...  170 

Suspect,  followed  by  of 

Suspicious,  followed  by  of 

Transform,  followed  by  into 

"          followed  by  to 

..  113 
..  169 

Swerve,  followed  by  from 

Transformation,  followed  by  into 

..  113 

Index 


824 


Iran  Slate,  followed  by  into 113 

Transmutation,  followed  by  into. ...  113 

Transmute,  followed  by  from 100 

'*  followed  by  to 169 

Transuosition 3 

Treat,  followed  by  qf 124 

Tremble,  followed  by  to 169 

Trust,  followed  by  iw 136 

"      followed  by  on 136 

Turn,  followed  by  from 100 

'*      followed  by  to 169 

Uncertain,  followed  by  of 1^4 

Unconscious,  followed  by  of 124 

Unaer 172 

*'     distinctions 67 

Underneath 176 

"         distinctions 67 

Uuderstand,  followed  by  by 84 

Unfair,  followed  by  to 169 

Union,  followed  by  with 189 

Unite,  followed  by  into 113 

"      followed  by  with *.. . .  188 

United,  followed  by  with 189 

Unjust,  followed  by  to 169 

Unless 253 

Unlike,  followed  by  to 169 

Unmindful,  followed  by  of 124 

Until 153,  251,  253 

Unto ^ 155 

Unworthy,  followed  by  of 125 

Up 177 

"  distinctions 24 

Upon 126 

"    diSiinctions 24,  136 

Vain,  followed  by  of 124 

Vary,  followed  by  ^om 100 

Venture,  followed  by  on 136 

Verbs,  followed  by  about 19 

"      followed  by  after 81 

"      followed  by  a^ 67 

"      followed  by  fty 84 

"      followed  by /(w 95 

"      followed  by  from 99 

"      followed  by  tw 108 

"      followed  by  iwto 113 

"      followed  by  0/.... 123 

"      followed  by  ow J36 

"      followed  by  to 168 

"      followed  by  wi^A 188 

Via 178 

Vibrate,  followed  by  to 169 

Vie,  followed  by  iw 109 

Wait,  followed  by  ow 136 

Want,  followed  ijy  of 123 

War,  followed  by  with 179 

Warn,  followed  by  of J24 

Tv  arp,  toiiowea  by  from li  0 

Watchful,  followed  by  of 124 

Wtan,  followe«t  by f^-rnn 123 

"      followed  by  0/ 123 

Wearv,  followed  by  qf 123 

Wed,  followed  by  to 168 

Welcome,  followed  by  to 169 

WhatCrel.  pron.) 281 

**     disiiictions 285 

Whate \er 295 

When  (adv.) 309 

"      (conj.) 254 


When  (coni.)  distinctions 255 

Whence  (adv.) 8l0 

(conj.) 256 

Whencesoever 311 

Whene'er 811 

Whenever oil 

Whensoever 811 

Where  (adv.).  312 

'*      (conj.) 257 

Whereas 259 

Whereat 260 

Whereby 260 

Where'er 262 

Wherefor 260 

Wherefore 260 

Wherein 260 

Whereinsoever 261 

Whereinto 261 

Whereof 261 

Whereto 261 

Wherever 262 

Whereupon 262 

Wherewith 262 

Wherewithal 262 

Whether 262,  271 

^'       —or 267 

"      or  wo^  omitted 263 

Which 283 

"     distinctions 285 

Whichever 295 

While 263 

"     distinctions .^.  255 

Whisper,  followed  by  to 168 

Whither '%5 

"      —thither 267 

Whithersoever 265 

Whitney,  W.  D.  (quoted) 1 

Who 287 

'*  distinctions 285 

Whoever 295 

Whose 292 

Why  (adv.) 812 

''    (conj.) k66 

Wire,  to  omitted  after 158 

Wish,  followed  by  for 95 

With 178 

"    distinctions 189 

Withdraw,  followed  by  from 100 

Within 190 

»'     distinctions 95, 109 

Without 191,  263 

With  regard  to 143 

*'    respect  to 143 

Words,  connected  by  conjunctions..  195 

'*      order  of S 

Work,  followed  by  for 95 

Worried,  followed  by  about 19 

"        followed  by  a< 19 

"        followed  by  by 19 

Worry,  followed  by  abcut. 19 

Wortny,  followed  by  of 125 

Wrangle,  followed  by  witJi.^ 189 

Wrap,  followed  by  from 100 

Write,  followed  by  about 19 

"      followed  by  to 168 

"      to  omitted  after 158 

Yet 266,  267,  268 

"  distinctions 234 


O!^  T 


(I    UNIVERSITY  ) 

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UNIVERSITY  OF  CALIFORNIA  LIBRARY 
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Return  to  desk  from  which  borrowed. 
This  book  is  DUE  on  the  last  date  stamped  below. 


50ct'48Q 


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26Fe'59E8B 


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R 


24SEP'59E 


MAH 


NIAY121960 
M^?^  DEC 

0£C    S|9^ 


\^ 


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l<f^ 


LD  21-100w-9,'47(A5702sl6)476 


#W 


"CD  u:) 

^  'b4  -5  FfA 
1 9 1988 

AUT0DIS.C.5EP21  '88 


^^ 


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UNIVERSITY  OF  CALIFORNIA  LIBRARY 


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